Horizon and Pacific ink deal to energise Exmouth with 80% clean energy

A solar farm and battery energy storage will be built.

Western Australia’s Horizon Power has signed a power purchase agreement with Pacific Energy to provide up to 80% of renewable energy to the town of Exmouth for 20 years.

In a statement, Pacific Energy said a new hybrid system will be developed, which will have a 9.6-megawatt (MW) solar farm, 49.6-megawatt-hours of battery energy storage (BESS), and a 7-MW gas power station.

This will be Pacific Energy’s first off-grid power project to supply such a significant portion of a remote town’s annual power requirements using solar energy and battery energy storage.

“It was incumbent on us to demonstrate exactly what an 80%-renewable solution would look like, and how we could integrate various technologies into the existing infrastructure to give the town the reliable, decarbonised power system it needs,” Pacific Energy COO Mike Hall said. 

The solar and BESS are expected to offset nearly 14,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually over the life of the PPA.

Renewables integration will start in early 2025, with the new system expected to be fully operational by the end of 2026.