Australia to host the world's largest solar farm

AUSTRALIA (Natural Energy News): The latest holder of the title, it appears, is "the world's largest solar farm", established in the northern region of Australia as Newcastle Waters. The solar farm in the Outback will be capable of producing 10 GW and will be large enough to be seen from space.

The Newcastle Water Solar Farm, which sits at the 10,000-square-kilometer (3,861-square-mile) cattle station between Alice Springs and Darwin, will cost the US $ 20 billion. The ground is very flat, which is ideal. Sun Cable is the company that will be responsible for the solar farm.

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A project referral has been submitted to the Environmental Protection Authority of the Northern Territory. This is the first phase of the approval process that will begin with community consultation in late 2020, then start construction in late 2023, energy production by 2026 and export by 2027.

It is on the Adelaide of Darwin Rail Corridor, which is fantastic for our logistics, as we are given a lot of material for transport to that site.

It is also a slightly balancing act, as it is south enough to be away from the main patch affected by wet weather, so it is a stable solar resource throughout the year. There are too many suns and not too many clouds.

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Overhead transmission lines will deliver electricity to Darwin and the state's power grid.

But two-thirds of the electricity will be exported to Singapore by high-voltage direct-current undersea cable. Newcastle Water Solar Farm and Sun Cable will provide about one-fifth of Singapore's electricity needs.

Singapore is working to move away from fossil fuels. Currently, 95% of Singapore's electricity is produced using natural gas, while the rest is made up of coal, oil, municipal waste and solar, reports the US Energy Information Administration.

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