Enel, a global leader in shared value, has just connected its first 45 MW feeder of the 137.7 MW1 Bungala Solar One photovoltaic (PV) plant near Port Augusta in South Australia to the grid. Through a joint venture between the Group’s fully-owned renewable energy subsidiary Enel Green Power S.p.A. (EGP) and Dutch Infrastructure Fund (DIF), the plant is the first part of the Bungala Solar PV Project, whose capacity will total more than 275 MW2. As a result, Bungala Solar PV is now the largest solar facility currently producing energy in Australia.

“We have just reached a historic landmark for our Group in an entirely new continent, as this is the first renewable energy flowing into the Australian grid from Enel,” said Antonio Cammisecra, Head of Enel Green Power. “We now develop, own and manage generation assets in all continents, starting from Europe and then moving around the globe, landing in Oceania through this unique project. We are just a few months away from the completion of this solar plant and look forward to other opportunities this renewable-resource-rich country will have to offer.”

Enel is investing around 157 million US dollars in the overall 275 MW project, with a total investment amounting to 315 million US dollars financed through a mix of equity and project finance with a consortium of local and international banks. The Bungala Solar project is fully contracted with a long-term power purchase agreement with Origin Energy, a major Australian utility.

The overall Bungala Solar PV Project will be able to generate around 570 GWh per year once fully operational, due in early 2019. The facility, which will cover an area of approximately 600 hectares, will consist of about 800,000 polycrystalline PV modules mounted on single-axis tracker structures following the Sun’s path from east to west and therefore increasing the amount of energy produced by the plant, compared to PV modules with fixed structures.

Enel Green Power, the renewable energies division of the Enel Group, is dedicated to the development and operation of renewables across the world, with a presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania. Enel Green Power is a global leader in the green energy sector with a managed capacity of around 42 GW across a generation mix that includes wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydropower, and is at the forefront of integrating innovative technologies into renewable power plants.