Victoria’s largest solar farm will deliver more cheap renewable energy and create new jobs in the Latrobe Valley.
Hazelwood North Solar Farm has been approved for a 450 megawatt solar farm that will power about 150,000 homes and prevent 700,000 tonnes of emissions.
The plan
- $651 million project
- create about 500 construction jobs
- larger than any solar farm currently operating in the state
- bordered by native vegetation landscaping to screen the facility from surrounding land
- also includes a 450 megawatt, 4-hour battery that will store cheap solar power during the day and feed it into to the grid when it’s needed.
The transition
Last year, renewable energy made up 39 per cent of energy capacity in Victoria, thanks to the 78 new large-scale projects that have been commissioned to date – delivering 5.34 gigawatts of energy.
These projects support Victoria’s nation-leading renewable energy generation targets of:
- 65 per cent by 2030
- 95 per cent by 2035.
and storage targets of:
- at least 2.6 gigawatts by 2030
- 6.3 gigawatts by 2035.
More renewable energy projects are being delivered faster thanks to recent changes permitting renewable energy projects to be eligible for an accelerated planning pathway under the Development Facilitation Program.
Victoria has hit every climate and energy target it has set to date and is on track to meet its renewable energy target of 95 per cent by 2035, which will create 59,000 jobs, deliver $9.5 billion in economic development and help us reach net-zero emissions by 2045.
Page last updated: 12/09/24