en.Wedoany.com Reported - Spark Renewables' Dinawan Solar and Battery Project has cleared a major regulatory hurdle after receiving federal approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC).

Located in southwestern New South Wales, the project plans to build an 800-megawatt (MW) solar farm, paired with a 356 MW/1,574 megawatt-hour (MWh) battery energy storage system, and also includes a standalone wind power component.

The state-level approval process was contentious. In January, the project was referred to the Independent Planning Commission (IPC) after receiving 82 objections—almost all from residents over 100 kilometers away—and was finally granted state approval in April this year.

The EPBC approval comes with several conditions, including requirements to submit annual compliance reports and to report any discrepancies from environmental plans agreed upon with federal and state authorities within two days. These environmental plans cover ten species of grasslands, woodlands, plants, birds, and reptiles listed as vulnerable, threatened, or endangered under the EPBC Act.

Grid connection rights for the project were granted last April, thanks to its successful bid within the South West Renewable Energy Zone (REZ), securing one of the largest allocations in the zone. However, the connection rights are only allocated for 300 MW of the solar-battery component, with two separate connection points for the wind component at 350 MW and 357 MW, respectively.

Will Stone, Development Director at Spark Renewables, stated that the project will be built in phases. The first phase will construct 300 MW of solar capacity; the remaining capacity will be ready to proceed if grid upgrades or other wind projects fail to launch. The target is to reach a final investment decision next year and begin construction in the second half of 2027, pending grid connection approval from Transgrid.

The Dinawan project is located between Coleambally and Jerilderie in southwestern New South Wales, an area that already hosts the operational Coleambally and Darlington Point solar farms, and has numerous proposed solar farms, large-scale batteries, and wind projects, including the nation's largest, the Yanco Delta project.

The project secured a large REZ allocation due to its proximity to the new Dinawan substation, which will transmit power via the 300-kilovolt (kV) interstate line Project Energy Connect and supply electricity to Victoria through the VNI West line.

The solar component of the project secured a federal offtake agreement in the latest seventh round of the Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) generation tender in May. The wind component obtained a CIS contract in the fourth round of tenders last October.

New South Wales' Investment Delivery Authority (IDA) fast-tracked the entire Dinawan vision in March. A four-member committee from the IDA has the power to override local councils and accelerate planning approvals—following complaints that major investments in New South Wales had become overly complex and time-consuming—which bodes well for the Dinawan wind project, still under state assessment.