Brisbane-headquartered clean energy developer Ark Energy has the green light to begin the construction phase of it’s Richmond Valley 435 MW solar farm and 275 MW / 2,200 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS).
The proposed solar farm is reported to deploy approximately 730,000 bifacial solar panels rated at 690 W each.
Located 25 kilometres south of Casino in the northern rivers region of New South Wales (NSW), the $1.3 billion (USD 900 million) solar and long-duration Lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) BESS project secured financial investment decision (FID) via an extraordinary board meeting for parent company Korea Zinc in Seoul.
Ark Energy is reported to expect a financing package of $586 million in equity funding and $716 million in debt financing.
The company says the project is the first build-to-own in Ark Energy’s development portfolio to secure FID.
The financing will fund the hybrid project’s priority stage, consisting of a 200 MW solar farm to be scaled up to 435 MW with full approval, and an 8-hour BESS.
It is also one of the first hybrid projects in the National Electricity Market (NEM) designed with a single point of connection to Transgrid’s 330 kV network, reducing sub-station footprint and grid integration complexity.
Ark Energy Chief Executive Officer Michael Choi said the approval represents Korea Zinc’s endorsement and confirms its continued commitment to supporting the project.
“We are thrilled to have reached this major milestone and look forward to moving the project into the next phase of financial close and construction,” Choi said.
The project has a Long-Term Energy Service Agreement (LTESA) under the NSW Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap’s incentive scheme and is listed in the Australian government’s National Renewable Energy Priority List.
In 2025, Ark Energy signed a supply agreement for the BESS with South Korean energy and solar solutions company Hanwha Energy and an early contractor involvement (ECI) agreement with Spain-headquartered infrastructure developer Elecnor Australia.
Financial close is targeted for September 2026, followed in October 2026 by the start of construction aiming for the project to be fully operational by January 2029.
Richmond Valley solar and BESS is to be built on land historically used for private commercial forestry.
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