Bouygues project director Bastien Sauvet and ENGIE Australia’s engineering and asset delivery general manager Leigh Newbery.
Photo by
Sarah Craven
A community consultation session has brought up some concerns about the Goorambat East Solar Farm’s community fund.
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ENGIE Australia’s engineering and asset delivery general manager Leigh Newbery said the session was well attended.
“The Goorambat East Solar Farm Community Benefit Fund information session ... was well attended and generated lots of insightful and relevant questions,” Mr Newbery said.
“The questions largely centred around the timing and structure of the fund – which will be funded once the solar farm is finished commissioning and operational – the role of the Community Advisory Committee and Bendigo Bank’s Community Enterprise Foundation, and the scope of the fund.”
The Goorambat East Solar Farm is about 14km north of Benalla.
Photo by
Sarah Craven
One of the successes of the night was expressions of interest were accepted for the Community Advisory Committee, with the aim to have the first meeting in mid-October.
“The committee will then define the scope of the fund, including what geographical areas will be covered, what funding caps will be, and identifying priority areas,” Mr Newbery said.
“Concerns that were raised include the need for the grant application process to be simple, which we are working on, and ensuring that the right people are represented on the Community Advisory Committee.
“Overall, we’d like to thank the local communities in Goorambat and wider Benalla region for their patience and support.
“We could have not asked for a better environment to work in, and we’re looking forward to delivering what is currently Victoria’s largest, a solar farm for them.”
In general, the Goorambat East Solar Farm is still on track, with three quarters of the construction finished.
“Construction of ENGIE’s 250Mw Goorambat East Solar Farm is around three quarters complete, with all the pilings installed and solar panel installations proceeding at pace,” Mr Newbery said.
“Construction could be complete by the end of 2025 or in early 2026, while commissioning could be complete by mid-2026 at the earliest — meaning that the solar farm would be connected to the electricity grid and operational.
“The peak of construction activities has past, meaning construction traffic and the number of people attending the project site is expected to slowly decrease over the next few months.
“As the last solar panels and inverters are installed by Bouygues and Equans, most of the site activity will be centred around connecting and testing all the equipment to ensure a safe energisation and commissioning process over the summer months.”
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