MELBOURNE, Australia, May 4, 2021 - Amp Power Australia Pty Limited, the Australian operating company of global developer Amp Energy ("Amp") has announced the establishment of the Renewable Energy Hub of South Australia ("REHSA"); a strategic portfolio of large scale integrated Solar PV, Wind and Battery Energy Storage ("BESS") assets located in South Australia. The Renewable Energy Hub of South Australia also includes the siting of the Spencer Gulf Hydrogen Energy Ecoplex, forming part of the South Australian Government's Hydrogen Action Plan.
The portfolio, acquired from EPS, includes three large Solar PV projects totalling over 1.3 GW of generation, located at Robertstown (636 MW), Bungama (336 MW) and Yoorndoo Ilga (388 MW) with a total BESS capacity of up to 540MW across the portfolio.
With development approvals and land secured, the Robertstown and Bungama projects are expected to begin staged energisation in late 2022. These two projects alone will create up to 550 equivalent full-time construction jobs including the regional workforce, and will generate electricity production to power the equivalent of 230,000 homes each year. Total investment in the Renewable Energy Hub of South Australia would exceed $2 billion.
Two of the sites offer additional strategic value with the planned development of an integrated hydrogen production facility for both the domestic market and for export from the Spencer Gulf to Asia where Amp has existing operations.
This strategic portfolio establishment continues Amp's expansion in Australia which presently includes 158 MW of operating or under construction solar PV assets located in NSW. Amp's NSW assets include the 39 MW Molong Solar Farm, near Orange in NSW, which achieved 100% generation in December 2020, only two months following first energisation.
''The strategic value of the South Australian portfolio is significant in a jurisdiction which is undergoing one of the most rapid energy transitions in the world". said Dean Cooper, Executive Vice President and Head of Amp Australia.
South Australian Minister for Trade and Investment, Stephen Patterson, welcomes the news of the Renewable Energy Hub of South Australia.
"South Australia has significant land mass and world-class wind and solar resources, with aspirations of reaching net 100 per cent renewable energy generation by 2030.
"We have seen over $7 billion invested in projects with another $20 billion in the pipeline. The Renewable Energy Hub of South Australia will be fundamental in integrating our state's renewable energy storage assets and building our capability and supporting the fast-moving energy transitions we're experiencing."
Amp's expansion in Australia will include the implementation of Amp X, a proprietary digital energy platform 100% owned by Amp, which provides a diverse portfolio of disruptive and interoperable grid edge solutions. Amp X includes a state-of-the-art smart transformer, which enables real-time autonomous management and optimised dispatch of all forms of distributed generation and loads across the grid.