Total Eren steps in to commission 256-MW Kiamal solar park

The commissioning process of the long-delayed 256.5-MWp solar park in Australia’s Victoria state has been initiated, majority-owner Total Eren said.

"To help mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 which has hindered the free movement of people internationally and inter-state, the owners of Kiamal Solar Farm have temporarily stepped-in to manage commissioning works on site with the assistance of Beon, a local Victorian-based electrical contractor," Total Eren said in a statement sent to Renewables Now.

The company, which is a unit of France’s Total SA (EPA:FP), noted that all major equipment is in place at the project site and that the power plant is “substantially complete."

Upon full commissioning, the responsibility for finalisation works will be handed back to the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor -- a consortium between Canadian Solar and Biosar Australia. It will have a primary role during the operations of the solar park, as well.

The Kiamal photovoltaic (PV) farm, comprising over 718,000 PV panels with single-axis trackers, will be capable of generating enough power to supply over 133,500 local homes. Its construction was initiated back in 2018, but the project faced a significant deferral due to grid connection constraints, like many other Australian projects.

The plant has four power purchase agreements (PPAs) -- with Mars Australia, Flow Power, Alinta Energy and a collective of 13 Victorian water corporations. A large-scale generation certificates (LGCs) agreement with Origin Energy is also in place.

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