Neoen to supply BHP with renewable energy under PPA

Neoen will supply BHP with renewable energy for its Olympic Dam mine in South Australia from July 2025.

Under a power purchase agreement (PPA) signed in November 2022, Neoen will supply 70 MW of renewable energy from its Goyder South Stage 1 wind park and Blyth Battery. This is half the energy needed to power the BHP site, the world’s fourth largest copper mine.

‘Foreign direct investment in renewable energy and storage contributes significantly to Australia’s and individual companies’ net zero trajectories,’ says Carolyn Abela, Investment Director, Austrade Paris.

‘Operational emissions for mining companies, like BHP, vary according to their decarbonisation pathways, timelines, growth and business-specific factors. Addressing electricity emission reduction through commercially feasible decarbonisation and a PPA with a partner like Neoen is a milestone towards success.’

Other recent green PPAs signed in Australia include:

• Denmark’s European Energy will supply Rio Tinto with all the output from its 1.1 GW solar farm being built in Queensland
• Portugal’s TagEnergy will supply Equinix with 115 MW to power its 17 data centres across Australia
• Spain’s Acciona will supply state-owned energy company Stanwell with the output from its 380 MW solar farm (under development in Queensland)
• Italy’s Enel Green Power will supply electricity retailer SmartestEnergy from its 93 MW solar project (under development in Victoria)
• The UK’s Octopus will provide state-owned energy retailer CleanCo with 126 MW from its wind farm in Queensland.

Neoen’s largest wind power asset globally

The PPA with BHP will support Neoen to construct its 203 MW Goyder South Stage 1b Wind Farm and the 238.5 MW Blyth Battery. The wind farm forms part of the larger Goyder Renewables Zone in South Australia.

Goyder South Stage 1 and Blyth Battery are both under construction. There are more than 400 construction workers on site for this part of Goyder South and a team of 40 at Blyth Battery. Around 15 permanent positions are expected during operations. In its entirety, Goyder South Stage 1 is Neoen’s largest wind power asset worldwide.

Neoen has completed financial close on the second tranche of the two projects. The projects were jointly financed with equity provided by Neoen and debt from a group of five lenders. They include Australia’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), KfW IPEX-Bank, ING, Mizuho and Westpac.

The CEFC provided A$99 million towards the two projects, saying it is ramping up support for key assets in Australia’s clean energy transition.

Neoen’s contribution to Australia’s energy transition

Neoen has been contributing to Australia’s energy transition for over a decade. It has over 3 GW of renewable energy assets in operation or under construction and has invested more than A$4 billion in the Australian market. The company intends to reach 10 GW in Australia by 2030.

Find out more about Neoen’s operations in Australia.

Join Australia’s transformation to net zero

Australia is positioning to become a renewable energy superpower. We are building new clean energy industries, expanding export supply chains, upskilling our workforce and forging global and regional partnerships.

This creates significant investment opportunities for global companies looking to expand into net zero industries. Find out more about Go Green with Australia and net zero.