| Work Detail |
Vast Renewables Limited and 1414 Degrees Limited announced today, through their joint venture SiliconAurora Pty Ltd, the signing of a term sheet with Vast Solar 1 Pty Ltd and OZ Minerals Services Pty Ltd (OZM), a subsidiary of BHP Group Limited (BHP). The term sheet aims to initiate negotiations for a possible binding agreement by September 30, 2024, facilitating access to the ElectraNet-owned Hill-to-Hill Transmission Line (H2H) near Port Augusta, South Australia, for the Aurora Energy Precinct.
The Precinct, owned by SiliconAurora, is slated to house a 140MW (2-hour) battery energy storage system (BESS). Additionally, Vast Renewables plans to develop Vast Solar 1 (VS1), a 30MW concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) plant with 288 MWh of thermal storage, on the same site. VS1 has received conditional grant funding of up to AUD $65 million from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). It will be co-located with Vast’s Solar Methanol 1 (SM1) project, a green methanol demonstration plant in collaboration with German integrated energy giant Mabanaft, receiving conditional grant funding of up to AUD $19.48 million and up to EUR 13.2 million from a joint initiative between the Australian and German Governments.
The BESS and VS1 projects are planned to connect to the H2H, aiming to provide clean and reliable energy to Australian households and businesses. However, connection to the H2H is contingent upon further negotiations and agreement with OZM and ElectraNet, as outlined in the term sheet. The term sheet also includes provisions for termination under specific scenarios, including if OZM is not satisfied with the risks associated with the proposed connections following a technical engineering review.
Vast’s CEO Craig Wood emphasized the significance of integrating dispatchable renewable energy with long-duration storage, like their proprietary CSP v.3.0 technology, into Australia’s electricity grid. Wood expressed optimism regarding the execution of the term sheet and looks forward to advancing discussions with BHP to finalize commercial and technical terms for progressing the Precinct. |
