Maoneng wins consent for 200-MW solar park in Australia's NSW

Maoneng Group, an Australian Chinese company, has secured development consent for a 200-MW solar power plant in the Australian state of New South Wales.

The Sunraysia solar farm will be located near Balranald in southern New South Wales on around 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of private freehold land. The project was approved last week by the state's planning department. According to an official assessment report Balranald has been identified as a "region of interest" for renewable energy projects due to its good solar resource and spare capacity on the grid.

The solar farm will consist of about 750,000 solar panels installed on 100,000 piles driven or screwed into the ground and will be connected to an existing substation via a 2-km (1.2 mile) overhead line.

The developer is looking to begin construction by the end of the year, according to a statement, cited by local media.

Sunraysia is Maoneng's second project in Australia. The company's first development is the 13-MW Mugga Lane solar park, built under the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government's reverse solar auction.

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