“ The Victorian government has set a target of 50 % renewables usage in Victoria by 2030 , and that ’ s given people confidence in the long-term focus ”
— King Arthur , Executive Director , Solis RE
93 construction phase , with many hundreds of ongoing jobs over the next 10 to 15 years ,” says Arthur .
With the weight of local businesses and Federal and State government members behind it , there is plenty of excitement in the potential for the completed Gippsland project . The first phase of the project , itself worth approximately $ 125mn , is a 44MW solar farm complete with battery storage amounting to 50MWh . “ That ’ s essential ,” Arthur says of the battery capacity . “ You can ’ t keep putting solar into the system as it ’ s produced
because you end up with a massive peak in the middle of the day when the sun ’ s shining , and obviously you don ’ t have any power at night .” Batteries can moderate the flow of electricity to the grid , minimising the impact of midday peaks and night-time troughs . For the wider project , Arthur asserts that artificial intelligence ( AI ) will be applied to the management of energy flow rates , particularly as more than solar is planned for Gippsland . “ With the larger site , the Gippsland Renewable Energy Park , we ’ re not just doing solar plus batteries . That ’ s stage one , 500MW
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