By DPA
Sydney : Work would start in Australia next year on what would be the world’s biggest solar power plant, Victoria state premier John Brumby said Tuesday.
Investment for the 154-megawatt power station in the southeastern state, nearly double the size of the largest US solar plant, has been pledged by an affiliate of Hong Kong-based CLP Group.
The investment followed grants of 50 million Australian dollars ($46 million) from the Victorian state government and 79 million Australian dollars from the federal government.
“Climate change is our biggest challenge for the future,” Brumby said in Melbourne when announcing the project that could fire 45,000 homes. “Climate change demands investment in new power technology, like this state-of-the-art solar power station.”
By using mirrors to track the sun and focus light on photovoltaic cells, the project should become one of the world’s most efficient arrays.
The power plant would not result in any greenhouse gas emissions, saving an estimated 396,000 tonnes a year compared with a coal-fired power plant with a similar output.
The difference in output would also generate tradable emissions credits that would meet renewable energy targets set by the federal government.
Australia has set a target for the use of renewable energy of 20 percent by 2050.