Pacific Partnerships, a subsidiary of the CIMIC group, has acquired the development rights for the 700MWac Cobbora solar farm and the accompanying large-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) in New South Wales, Australia.

The rights were purchased from Sydney-based renewable energy developer Marble Energy.

Pacific Partnerships managing director Simon Nicholls stated: “The Cobbora solar farm is a fundamental piece of the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (CWO REZ), which in turn is a critical priority for the NSW government.”

Pacific Partnerships’ energy business Pacific Partnerships Energy, will now assume responsibility for developing, investing in and managing the delivery and operations of the Cobbora solar farm and BESS.

CIMIC Group executive chairman Juan Santamaria stated: “NSW is part of our strategic new energy focus as we expand our diversified national portfolio of assets and contribute to the Australian government's commitments to reach net zero emissions by 2050.”

Another CIMIC company, UGL, will undertake early works, develop the project solution and provide operation and maintenance services after commissioning.

Planned on a 3,000-hectare site east of Dubbo, the solar facility will produce enough electricity to supply 280,000 average-sized homes annually.

The complex will be located on predominantly cleared grazing land, enabling the installation of batteries capable of storing up to 1.6-gigawatt hours.

Post-installation, the land will continue to support sheep grazing activities.

An environmental impact statement for the Cobbora solar farm is expected to be submitted by Pacific Partnerships later in 2024.

Before this, the project will be presented for public exhibition to gather input from the community and stakeholders.

The solar farm will be integrated into the national grid through infrastructure provided by EnergyCo NSW, as part of the CWO REZ.