Sun Cable’s Singapore power project could be the spark that ignites the Territory economy

The NT government has high hopes that one privately-generated project will drive economic growth for a generation. Find out which one.

Australia-Asia Power Link – better known as Sun Cable – is a flagship project that defines the Territory Government’s vision to deliver a $40bn economy by 2030.

First flagged nearly four years ago and with a team of about a dozen people currently working out of the company’s office at Darwin’s Paspaley Building, Sun Cable is expected to deliver 15 per cent of Singapore’s electricity sourced from a solar farm located in the Barkly Region.

Major Projects Commissioner Jason Schoolmeester called it a “massive solar project”, combining more than $30bn in capital expenditure with innovation and ambition to deliver a 5000km transmission system between the Territory and Singapore.

Jason Schoolmeester, Territory Major Projects Commissioner, and Andrew Cowan, Territory Investment Commissioner. Picture: Thomas Morgan

“The two things in my mind that are pretty exciting is it’s going to deliver a step-change in renewable power to the Darwin Katherine region, and that’s a huge change in opportunity for industry in terms of access to industrial scale renewable power,” Mr Schoolmeester said.

Australia-Asia-Power Link will deliver to the Territory up to 800MW of power.

The Darwin-Katherine Electricity System today only requires about 220 megawatts.

“It’s a massive step-change and we’re working with them around how best to deliver that power to new industry on Middle Arm,” he said.

“What’s not probably as well-known is the transmission towers will have the capacity to have a second 3.2GW cable installed which could deliver 6.4GW.

Future NT: Major projects driving $40bn economy ambition

“It’s going to have a second cable strung at the same time and that will mean this will create the potential for up to four gigawatts being delivered to industry in Darwin. It is an extraordinary number and will need additional generation sites to bring that capacity online. “This amount of energy creates opportunity for hydrogen production, data centres and those type of industries. It’s massive,” Mr Schoolmeester said.

Investment Commissioner Andy Cowan has a similar take on the project’s significance.

“When you think of Middle Arm sustainable development precinct and the requirement for those large scale green ammonia projects, the feedstock they need is that firm renewable power. It’s all coming together very nicely.”

Sun Cable’s Australia-Asia PowerLink will unlock Australia’s vast world-class solar and land resources to provide significant renewable electricity to Darwin and create a new $2 Billion export industry by supplying up to 15% of Singapore’s electricity needs. Pictured: render of Sun Cable’s proposed solar farm in Powell Creek NT. Picture: supplied

The challenge for the government, according to Mr Schoolmeester, is maximising the benefits projects like Sun Cable deliver.

“The trick for us, which is the key to all major projects, is how to build new opportunities from the supply chain needed to deliver these projects and how to value-add the products created,” he said.

“With a project like Sun Cable, it is understanding the opportunities for the Territory to be part of the supply chain and identifying how we might be able to manufacture the parts here?

“How do we get involved in utility scale batteries because the amount of storage required for the solar farms is huge, so how do we get involved and be the place where utility scale batteries are manufactured?

“Sun Cable’s exciting and they’re working hard on their project. The project recently appointed financial partners to raise the money for the construction phase. There’s a lot of interest in the project and its opportunities for Singapore.”

Beyond Sun Cable, the future also points to infrastructure changes along our main transport routes to accommodate electric vehicles.

Mr Cowan says work is already underway preparing for the rollout.

“There’s a huge opportunity and the tourism sector is embracing this,” he said.

“We’ve had a number of engagements with proponents looking at how that model can change from a 15-minutes stop to get a hot pie, drink or iced coffee and then fill up your car and off to a situation where you’re going to be there for three or four hours doing a deep charge.

“This then creates opportunities around these charging precincts and how you can activate those with activities for the kids, whether that is it a water-park or whatever else.

“The whole leisure travel is gong to be quite different over the next decade and I think it’s a huge opportunity and specifically positioning the Stuart Highway as one of the longest electric drives in Australia and how can you market that.”