European Energy Signs PPA With Rio Tinto For 1.3 GWp Solar Farm

European Energy Signs PPA With Australian firm Rio Tinto For 1.3 GWp Solar Farm

By Akash Dhiman/ Updated On Wed, Jan 24th, 2024

Highlights :

As part of the agreement, European Energy, in partnership with Rio Tinto, will develop, construct, and operate the 1.3 GWp solar farm, located approximately 50 kilometers southwest of Gladstone in Queensland.

European Energy Signs PPA With Australian firm Rio Tinto For 1.3 GWp Solar Farm

European Energy Signs PPA with Rio Tinto. Photo: European Energy

A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) has been signed between the renewable energy company European Energy and Australia-based mining company Rio Tinto. The agreement aims to supply all the energy from the upcoming solar farm Upper Calliope Solar Farm to Rio Tinto.

The agreement between European Energy and Rio Tinto is touted as the biggest solar corporate PPA in Australia. As part of the agreement, European Energy, in partnership with Rio Tinto, will develop, construct, and operate the 1.3 GWp solar farm, located approximately 50 kilometers southwest of Gladstone in Queensland, read a press statement released by European Energy.

Spread across 2,700 hectares, the solar farm’s construction will commence in 2025-26. The project is expected to generate 5 percent of the total electricity required in Queensland along with having an economic impact by creating over 1,000 direct and indirect jobs in the region.

Spanning 2,700 hectares, the solar farm’s construction is targeted to commence in 2025-26. It is expected to contribute 5% of Queensland’s electricity and have a significant economic impact. Powering Rio Tinto’s Gladstone operations will support over 1,000 existing jobs in the region, as well as creating up to 1,000 new direct and indirect jobs during construction, and 100 jobs during operation of the solar farm respectively.

The project‘s development is expected to boost renewable energy production in Australia as it is being touted as the largest solar farm project in the country’s key industrial regions. Rio Tinto has committed to a 25-year purchase of all electricity from the farm, which will enable the project’s development.

“The Upper Calliope Solar Farm is a landmark project for European Energy. With a capacity that makes it the largest solar farm we have ever developed, it highlights the transformative potential of solar power in regions like Queensland,” said Knud Erik Andersen, CEO of European Energy.

Apart from this, European Energy divested three renewable energy projects in Europe, including the Bubney Solar Farm in the United Kingdom and the Bloosballich Wind Park in Germany, last month. In another wind project in Germany, European Energy divested more than 100MW of renewable energy.