Renewables developer Neoen has completed financial close on the 157MW Kaban Green Power Hub in the Australian state of Queensland.
The project consists of a 157MW wind farm located near the town of Ravenshoe in the Atherton Tablelands and a 320km transmission line upgrade of the North Queensland coastal circuit.
Total project costs will amount to approximately A$370m (€229m), with debt provided by a syndicate of five lenders, BNP Paribas, HSBC, MUFG, NAB and NORD/LB.
The wind farm consists of 28 Vestas V162 5.6MW turbines.
Vestas was provided with notice to proceed in May, the site was mobilised in early June and civil works are now underway.
Construction is expected to take 21 months with full energy generation scheduled for 2023.
The Queensland government has committed funding towards the transmission network upgrade which will support the wind farm and establish the Northern Queensland Renewable Energy Zone.
Neoen and Powerlink Queensland are partnering to upgrade the line between Cairns and Townsville, unlocking up to 500MW of additional capacity for future projects.
The project is underpinned by a 15-year capacity purchase agreement (CPA) with CleanCo, Queensland’s publicly-owned clean energy company.
The investment is expected to create over 250 construction jobs in the region of Far North Queensland, with 50 workers already active on site.
The wind farm will generate 457 gigawatt-hours electricity each year, once fully operational.
Neoen Australia managing director Louis de Sambucy said: “We are delighted to announce that our Kaban project has reached this important financial milestone.
“I would like to thank CleanCo Queensland and our lenders for their trust in our ability to deliver high-quality projects.
“We are proud of the pivotal role the project is playing in establishing the Northern Queensland REZ and look forward to Kaban contributing to Queensland’s energy transition and to supporting the region’s recovery from Covid-19.”
CleanCo Queensland chief executive Maia Schweizer said: “The Kaban Green Power Hub project provides critical system strength support for North Queensland.
“As an important part of CleanCo’s low emission generating portfolio, the renewable energy generated by this wind farm will allow us to offer affordable contracts to big energy users, translating to continued lower energy prices and increased competitiveness for Queensland businesses and communities.”
Powerlink chief executive Paul Simshauser said: “The Kaban Green Power Hub is pivotal to unlocking Queensland’s first Renewable Energy Zone.
“It forms part of A$700m worth of work Powerlink is delivering in North Queensland over the next five years.”
Neoen chairman and chief executive Xavier Barbaro said: “We would like to thank and congratulate the team for their hard work reaching financial close on our second Queensland project.
“The strong interest of our lenders demonstrates again how our integrated and long-term ownership business model provides confidence to the market.
“With over 2GW of assets in operation and under construction and an extensive development pipeline, Australia is Neoen’s leading market and will be a key contributor to our global target of 10GW by the end of 2025.”