Markets & Policy

Queensland opens tender for 400 MW renewables and 100 MW storage

The tender was part of a raft of announcements, including confirmation of a commitment to source 50% of its electricity from renewables by 2030. Queensland currently lags behind the progress of other Australian regions in terms of renewable energy installed, but multiple projects have been announced.
By
Frederic Brown
Annual investment in renewables in Australia has soared in 2017 to almost $6bn, but an unambitious NEG could strip the sector of enthusiasm and cash, says BNEF. | Photo: YD Projects

The Queensland government in Australia has submitted an open tender calling for the development of 400 MW of large-scale renewables and 100 MW of energy storage projects. It has received 115 proposals from 79 different companies for the program.

Bids were placed on projects in a large range of technologies and energy storage projects. Among these were a 2200 MW wind energy project, a 6400 MW solar project, about 500 MW of other renewable energy technologies adding to 6,000 MW of energy storage projects.

Queensland Energy Minister Mark Bailey said: “Renewable energy and storage technology will play an important role in the transition to a lower carbon energy future and we are doing everything we can to ensure the benefits of this new investment flow into the Queensland economy.”

Bailey continued: “This is greater than the current 8,200 MW generated by coal-fired power stations and is further proof that Queensland does not need a new coal-fired power station being trumped by the LNP.”

“A number of these projects could be first of a kind in Queensland, including concentrated solar thermal technology which provides dispatchable energy supply – like the Crescent Dunes facility in the Nevada desert, powering Las Vegas overnight.”

The tender is scheduled to enter its final stage in November 2017.

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