Australia gives enviro nod to SunCable's AAPowerLink project

The Australian federal government has granted environmental approval to the Australia-Asia Power Link (AAPowerLink) project in the Northern Territory, which aims to deliver almost 6 GW of renewables to customers in Australia and Singapore.

The permit was awarded with strict conditions to protect nature, the government said on Wednesday.

AAPowerLink, touted as the world's largest renewable energy and transmission project in development, aims to provide 4 GW of continuous green electricity to industrial clients in Darwin, the capital city of the Northern Territory, with 900 MW planned for the first stage and a further around 3 GW in the second stage. Additionally, it aims to deliver 1.75 GW of electricity to customers in Singapore through a 4,300 km subsea cable.

The approval covers the plan to add solar and energy storage capacity of up to 10 GW at Powell Creek, an 800 km high voltage direct current (HVDC) overhead transmission line stretching from the solar site to Murrumujuk, northeast of Darwin, as well as a subsea HVDC cable.

Power supply is due to begin in the early 2030s.

According to the developer’s estimates, the project will deliver over AUD 20 billion (USD 13.48bn/EUR 12.12bn) in economic value to the Northern Territory and open about 6,800 jobs during the construction phase. Last month, its plan received principal environmental approval from the Northern Territory Government and NT Environment Protection Authority.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.674/EUR 0.606)

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