Planning approvals for solar farm near Port Wakefield up for sale
An Adelaide earthmoving contractor has put an unusual business opportunity on the market – a small solar farm near Port Wakefield.
North & North East
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Plans for a small-scale solar farm near Port Wakefield have been put on the market by an Adelaide earthmoving contractor.
Remo Bria developed the concept for the 4.9MW facility after an approach from the Wakefield Regional Council.
Mr Bria engaged engineers to draw up plans for the solar farm on a 121ha block which he bought as an investment for his two children on recently-bituminised Mail Rd.
Planning approval was given by the council in February while Mr Bria also obtained a generator’s connection offer from SA Power Networks.
He has decided to try to sell the concept to a private investor, as the solar farm would require around $8 million to develop.
“The total site is about 22 acres of the 300 acres I own there and is right across the road from three large chicken farms,” he said.
“The whole project is basically shovel ready and would be an ideal source of renewable energy for the chicken farms or new ventures like hydroponics.
“I want to help create jobs so money goes into the local economy, that’s the main aim.”
Mr Bria said the solar farm site was less than 5km from the Hummocks electricity substation, which could connect it to the main grid.
“One of the challenges I am finding is how do you sell a solar farm,” he said.
“It’s not like you can just take it to a real estate agent.”
Two small-scale solar farms already are being built in the area by national renewable energy company MPower.
One is opposite the Hummocks substation on the Copper Coast Highway while the other is at Kadina.
Mr Bria said his solar farm would be the perfect fit for an organisation like MPower.
“A 5MW farm is the mum and dad sized investment in the solar industry,” he said.
“Keeping it under 5MW allows the council to assess it but it has become something for the big boys to play with, not me.
“I had the money to design it, not to fund it.”
Mr Bria said Wakefield Regional Council should be commended for pursuing the idea with him.
“They have been really supportive of the project and I can’t praise them enough,” he said.
“They are doing everything they can to generate economic activity in the region in some pretty tough times.”
Mr Bria said he was open to offers for the planning approvals, connection offer and engineering designs he had prepared for the solar farm.
He had decided to sell them after an original investor did not deliver on a promise to take the project over.