Category: Australia & Oceania


AREVA to build solar thermal augmentation for coal fired power plant in Australia

April 13th, 2011 | Posted in Solar

AREVA has been awarded the contract to build a 44 MW solar thermal augmentation project at an existing 750 MW coal fired power plant in Queensland, Australia. The Kogan Creek power station, built by CS Energy, has been in commercial operation since 2007, using new clean coal power technology. The augmentation will use AREVA Solar's Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) technology to produce additional clean power at the power plant, increasing its fuel efficiency, and providing more power to the power grid. It will effectively boost the power plant's steam generation system with an additional source of superheated steam.

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Toshiba to supply geothermal equipment for New Zealand geothermal power plant

April 5th, 2011 | Posted in Geothermal

Toshiba has won an order from the McConnell Dowell, SNC-Lavalin, Parsons Brinkerhoff joint venture, for geothermal power equipment for the Te Mihi geothermal power station in Taupo, New Zealand. The company is to supply two 83 MW geothermal turbines, along with generators and condensers. The equipment is to be delivered in 2012.

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Tata and Sunengy partner to build floating solar power plant in India

March 22nd, 2011 | Posted in Solar

Tata Power announced a partnership with the Australian solar power company Sunengy. The two companies will collaborate on developing and building the first floating solar power plant in India. The power plant will serve as a pilot project, promoting the technology in one of the fastest growing solar energy markets in the world. Sunengy's Liquid Solar Array (LSA) technology, which has been patented, works best in combination with hydropower plants.

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Contact Energy receives draft decision for 504 MW Waikatu wind farm

February 25th, 2011 | Posted in Wind

Contact Energy (in majority ownership of Origin Energy) announced the company has received the draft decision recommending approval for the company's proposed Waikatu wind farm (aka Hauāuru mā raki – meaning "north west wind"), located along the coast of Waikato region, New Zealand. The future wind farm is to have 504 MW of installed capacity, featuring 168 wind turbines scattered along various spots.

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Gamesa enters New Zealand wind market with 8 MW supply deal

January 25th, 2011 | Posted in Wind

Gamesa is to supply 9 G52-850 kW wind turbines to New Zealand for the Mount Stuart wind farm, located at the southeast end of the South Island. This order marks the entrance of the Spanish wind turbine manufacturer into the Asia-Pacific wind energy market. The order comes from Pioneer Generation.

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Infigen Energy wins approval for solar project in Australia – still long way to go before realization

January 24th, 2011 | Posted in Solar

Infigen Energy has received planning approval for the Capital Solar Farm project in the New South Wales, Australia, from the New South Wales Department of Planning. This means the company can now proceed further with the development of this solar project, which is part of a 150 MW initiative comprising three solar power projects in this part of Australia.

Infigen Energy is working with Suntech Power on these projects. The company has previously received approval for the Nyungan Solar Farm. The consoritum now has two projects approved, of four proposed and being assessed for Commonwealth Government funding under the country's Solar Flagships Program.

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ET Solar supplying 12 MW of modules to ZEN Technologies

January 10th, 2011 | Posted in Solar

ET Solar and ZEN Technologies announced an agreement under which ET Solar is to supply 12 MW of solar modules to the Australian solar home and commercial energy developer.

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Contact Energy receives final decision for Tauhara 2 geothermal project

December 22nd, 2010 | Posted in Geothermal

Contact Energy (New Zealand), in majority ownership of Origin Energy (Australia), announced the company has been given final approval to proceed with the Tauhara 2 geothermal project. The final decision grants the company all the consents it applied for earlier.

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Contact Energy gets consents for the Waitahora wind farm

December 1st, 2010 | Posted in Wind

Computer graphics rendering of the future Waitahora wind farm.

Contact Energy (New Zealand), in majority ownership of Origin Energy (Australia), has received consents from the Environment Court for the development of the Waitahora wind farm in New Zealand, in the Puketoi Range. The consents grant Contact Energy permission to proceed with the placement of wind turbines on the wind farm site, but only after the final approval for a final set of conditions for the wind farm which the company is to prepare and submit by December 17, 2010.

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GeoDynamics to begin hydraulic fracturing at Jolokia 1 well

October 18th, 2010 | Posted in Geothermal

GeoDynamics, operator of the Innamicka "Deeps" joint venture between the company and Origin Energy, announced the Jolokia 1 project (Australia) has reached a milestone. The company has successfully completed drilling operations, and is now ready to begin with the hydraulic fracture simulation of the granite beneath the surface in order to create a geothermal reservoir. The purpose of fracturing rock is to create a passage way for the water, to be injected from the surface, allowing it to reach hot and deep hollow spaces in the granite, to pick up geothermal heat, and turn into steam. That stem is then extracted back to the surface and used to power steam turbines to generate electricity.

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