Billionaire Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, well known for his philanthropy and mining magnate, has joined fellow billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes in raising millions of dollars to build a massive solar farm. The farm will be constructed in the Northern Territory of Australia and will supply energy to Singapore.
Sun Cable, the company behind the project, announced that Forrest’s Squadron Energy and Grok Ventures and Cannon-Brookes investment firm had become co-lead investors in the $20 billion-plus development.
According to the Sun Cable’s chief executive, David Griffin, the company has already raised tens of millions of dollars in an oversubscribed capital raising. The investment will fund the development work for the “Australia-Singapore Power Link.” If successful, the company plans to spread an array of panels that have a 10-gigawatt-capacity across 15,000 hectares near Tennant Creek. Those panels would have a backing of about 22 gigawatt-hours in battery storage.
The developers claim that the solar farm could provide one-fifth of Singapore’s power needs. Some of the electricity generated from the farm would be used in Darwin. However, the majority would be exported to Singapore through a 4,500km high-voltage direct-current transmission network. One of these networks includes a 3,800km submarine cable running through the waters of Indonesia.
Griffin said the funding still has a long way to go, but having the support of Forrest and Cannon-Brookes was a significant and huge step forward. Sun Cable aims to reach financial close by late 2023, and by 2027, they plan to have the development complete.
Griffin said:
For this type of venture, where there’s a great deal of complexity, this sort of capital raising with that caliber of investor is critical. Mike and Andrew have successfully endured the process of building very large-scale outcomes from scratch. I look forward to Sun Cable achieving a similar outcome and therefore hastening the global energy transition.
A similar proposal for the Pilbara, the Asian Renewable Energy Hub, is being developed alongside the Northern Territory plan. The proposed 15-gigawatt solar and wind hybrid plant will produce a green hydrogen manufacturing hub and power the local industry.
Furthermore, Forrest’s Fortescue Metals Group is also investing in a 60-megawatt solar farm, which would help replace diesel generation at mines. Alinta Energy will build this farm at Christmas Creek.
