56 Turbines And A 20 MW Battery To Supply 10 ha Greenhouse With Renewable Energy

The LED lamps of the 10-hectare Australian agribusiness Nectar Farms are to be powered with wind and battery storaged energy. The greenhouse will share its site with a power renewable power company Neoen. They ordered the building of a pioneering wind complex. A wind farm will be installed by Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy with 56 of the firm's SG 3.4-132 turbines (for total capacity of 194 MW) and a battery energy storage system.

Stawell

According to the Victorian government, this project will make the advanced agriculture facility the world’s first ever crop farm to be completely powered by renewable energy. “This is an exciting initiative which illustrates how renewable energy can unlock opportunities for large, energy-intensive businesses to create jobs and build a better future for regional communities", says Lily D’Ambrosio, Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change.

The whole project is to be realised at the Bulgana Green Energy Hub, located in the Australian town of Stawell, in the state of Victoria. The whole facility will comprise a 194 MW wind farm as well as a 20 MW / 34 MWh lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery. Construction is set to begin right away and the commissioning of the facility is expected by August 2019.

The power of the complex is to be purchased by two partners: the government of the state of Victoria has agreed to buy the power for the next 15 years, and the Nectar Farms has agreed to do so for the next 10 years.

LED light technology

Nectar Farms will use LED light technology to grow tomatoes in glasshouses. In total, they plan a 40-hectare facility. 

It is estimated that 97% of Nectar Farms needs will be supplied by 15% of all of the electricity generated at the wind plus storage facility, with the rest going directly to the local grid. Only 3 percent of Nectar Farms' energy demand cannot be supplied with wind energy when longer no-wind-periods occur. 

Nectar Farms will also receive the power stored in the batteries during low wind periods. The energy supplied directly from the wind farm, at a lower cost than available from the grid, helped its business case to proceed. 

Bulgana Green Energy Huby

Under the terms of the contract entered into with the renewable energy IPP, Neoen, Siemens Gamesa will build the entire complex on an EPC basis and then maintain it for 25 years. 

For more information:
Siemens Gamesa
www.siemensgamesa.com

Publication date: 4/12/2018