Dutch solar project developer and asset owner Photon Energy Group said in its Q4 2024 financial results that it lost €1.5 million (US$1.57 million) on the sale of two operating solar PV power plants and a solar hybrid site in New South Wales, Australia.
According to the group, the two solar PV plants have a combined generation capacity of 14.5MW, while the development-stage solar-battery hybrid project has a capacity of 8.2MW/10.9MWh.
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The systems are located in New South Wales and were sold to CleanPeak Energy, an Australian-owned developer and owner of energy transition infrastructure, in a €6 million deal completed in October 2024.
The Leeton and Fivebough power plants, both commissioned in 2021, are connected to the Essential Energy distribution network through 5MW grid connections. These plants were constructed using single-axis tracking systems and bifacial solar modules to maximise energy yield throughout the day.
Most of the electricity generated by these power plants is sold into the National Electricity Market (NEM), while a small proportion is sold through a power purchase agreement (PPA). It is worth noting that the plants were initially developed using Large Generation Certificates (LGCs) to generate revenue, with PPAs incorporated after the plant’s energisation.
Photon also said the transaction with CleanPeak included the divestment of an 8.2MW/10.9MWh hybrid solar and battery energy storage system (BESS) project located in Boggabri, New South Wales, which resulted in the €1.5 million loss.
Despite the sale of these assets, Photon’s Australia portfolio generated a cumulative capacity of around 20,000MWh. Photon said its overall portfolio electricity generation in Q4 2024 stood at 23.4
GWh compared to 25.1 GWh in the comparable period last year and was down by -6.6% YoY due to the sale of 14.5 MWp in Australia, which previously enabled Photon to offset the lower generation output of European power plants during the winter months.
Photon makes progress on 20MW New Zealand solar PV power plant
In the New Zealand solar PV market, Far North Solar Farm, a solar energy asset developer based in Auckland, revealed that around 70% of the solar PV modules have been installed at the Pukenui Solar Farm, with energisation scheduled for early 2025.
Dutch developer and asset owner Photon Energy Group is carrying out the ongoing module installation. Once this has been completed, electrical work and testing will begin before the 20.8MW solar PV plant is fully energised.
The plant is located on the northern tip of New Zealand’s north island, around 360km from Auckland.
In Europe, Photon recently inked an asset management contract for two Hungarian PV projects with a cumulative generation capacity of 101MWp.
Photon signed the contract with EDP Renováveis (EDPR), the Portuguese energy utility and project developer. The company said it will “provide a full scope of asset management services, including the technical, commercial and financial management of the PV power plants to ensure optimal performance on behalf of EDPR.”
In the same announcement, Photon Energy said it will also take over another EDPR asset “in the future”, which is currently under construction.
