Western Downs Green Power Hub
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Western Downs Green Power Hub | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country | Australia |
| Location | 22km southeast of Chinchilla, Queensland |
| Coordinates | 26°57′18″S 150°40′37″E / 26.955°S 150.677°E |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | June 2020 |
| Construction cost | $600 million[1] |
| Owner | Neoen |
| Operator | |
| Solar farm | |
| Type | Flat-panel PV |
| Collectors | 1,000,000 |
| Site area | 1,500 hectares (3,700 acres) |
| Power generation | |
| Nameplate capacity | 400 MW |
| External links | |
| Website | https://westerndownsgreenpowerhub.com.au/ |
| Western Downs Battery | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country | Australia |
| Coordinates | 34°54′S 137°42′E / 34.9°S 137.7°E |
| Construction began | January 2023 |
| Commission date | 2025 |
| Owner | Neoen |
| Operator | |
| Power generation | |
| Nameplate capacity | 540 MW |
| Storage capacity | 1,080 MW·h |
| External links | |
| Website | westerndownsgreenpowerhub |
The Western Downs Green Power Hub is a large renewable energy project owned and operated by Neoen[2] near Chinchilla in Queensland, Australia. It consists of The 460 MWp (direct current) Western Downs Solar Farm and a 540 MW / 1080 MWh grid battery. The solar farm consists of over one million solar panels to generate 400 megawatts of (alternating current) power.[3] It utilizes 72-cell bi-facial solar modules on single-axis trackers; a system that tracks the sun throughout the day.[4] It was the largest solar farm in Australia for some time.[4]
The 1,500 hectare solar farm is owned and operated by Neoen. The state government-owned renewable energy operator CleanCo Queensland has signed an agreement to purchase 80% of the project's capacity.[3]
Construction began in June 2020.[1] The solar farm was built by Sterling & Wilson.[1] Exports to the grid had begun by August 2022.[5] The final solar panel was installed on 1 May 2023.[6] The event was attended by state premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.[6]
The 540 MW / 1080 MWh big battery with grid forming inverters has 3 stages. Construction of Stage 1 of the battery had begun by January 2023,[7] and completed in June 2025.[8] Construction of Stage 2 began in August 2024, and completed in September 2025.[9] The PV station and battery, along with two other batteries, are connected to the national grid via the Western Downs substation and a new 275 kilovolt line constructed by Powerlink Queensland.[10] Battery containers for a 270MW/540MWh section are made in Shanghai.[11]
Construction of Stage 3 with 305 MW / 1,220 MWh (4 hour) starts in 2026, expected operating by 2028, making the battery numbers combined 845 MW / 2,300 MWh.[12]
