Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group (NCIG) has penned a power purchase agreement (PPA) to secure power from Lightsource bp’s 450MW Goulburn River solar PV power plant in New South Wales, Australia.
Under the terms of the agreement, the PV plant will provide renewable energy at a volume to achieve 100% renewable energy for NCIG’s Kooragang Island facility from 2030 onwards.
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The Kooragang Island facility is located in the Hunter Region of New South Wales in the Port of Newcastle. It is seen as a key infrastructure in the state’s coal supply chain, connecting the state with global markets.
The facility’s inbound operations involve receiving an average of 20 trains per day, with the capability to store up to 4.5 million tonnes of coal. In its outbound operations, NCIG loads ships that can be up to 300 meters long and have a capacity of up to 165,000 tonnes of coal.
Construction on the 450MW Goulburn River solar PV plant started in December 2024 following the developer’s success in the recent first tender of the Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS), which saw solar PV awarded 2.8GW.
The project plans detail that it will comprise approximately one million bifacial solar PV modules in an east-west single-axis tracking arrangement, with an approximate height of three metres. It will have an operational lifespan of around 40 years.
In late 2023, Lightsource bp was awarded a Long-Term Energy Service Agreement (LTESA) following a competitive tender process with the New South Wales government. This agreement involves providing long-duration energy storage (LDES) services.
As part of the project, a 49MW/392MWh 8-hour duration BESS will be installed at a later stage to enable hybridisation. The project is anticipated to be operational by the end of 2026.
Lightsource bp’s owner, oil and gas major bp, announced last month it is looking to divest its interests in the solar PV developer as part of a shift away from renewables.
