Latest news with #AMPYR
Perth Now
3 days ago
- Business
- Perth Now
Indigenous communities plug in to power their future
Indigenous people risk being left behind in the clean energy transition without investment in community-led projects, particularly in regional and remote areas. More than 400 Traditional Owners, industry professionals, academics and government representatives have gathered for the First Nations Clean Energy Symposium on the Sunshine Coast. They discussed challenges in the sector as well as examples of community-led projects which are leading the clean energy transition. One of the newest, with ground breaking on the project just a week ago, is a battery project in the central-west NSW town of Wellington. The local Wiradjuri community, through the newly formed Wambal Bila corporation, have struck a deal with renewable energy company AMPYR Australia, giving them a right to take long-term equity ownership in the $340 million project. Wambal Bila director Gavin Brown said the deal, which gives the community the option of a five per cent equity stake, came about after AMPYR approached Traditional Owners to get involved. Rather than short-term outcomes such as jobs or training, the project could benefit the community for decades, Mr Brown said. "This is something that's more closely aligned with cultural values," he told AAP. "You're not digging up the land. It's renewable, it's a great alignment." AMPYR Australia chief executive Alex Wonhaus said the company wanted to go the "extra mile" to ensure it was working with the community. "One of the biggest risks to the energy transition is actually we're failing to bring the local communities along including, but frankly not limited to, First Nations communities," he said. "We as an organisation really wanted to do something which is much better than the bare minimum." First Nations Clean Energy Network co-chair Karrina Nolan said without investment, Indigenous people risk being left out of Australia's move toward renewables. "We've got people living in social and rental housing that can't keep the lights on, we've got 15,000 people across the country on prepaid meters that are disconnected every couple of weeks," she told the symposium. The woes of unreliable power are a reality known all too well in the community of Wujal Wujal in Queensland's far north. Following heavy rain and flooding from Tropical Cyclone Jasper in late 2023, the entire 300-strong population of Wujal Wujal had to be evacuated, the community was without power for months and residents could only return a year later. Despite the devastation, the community used the event to realise a 30-year dream - starting work on a solar and battery microgrid. In many remote Indigenous communities, power is paid for using rechargeable cards, which Wujal Wujal resident Trinity Clarke said could mean periods without electricity for households. "It's to not have to rely on shoddy power cards, to have reliable power, which impacts our white goods, impacts the food a family can store in their freezers," Ms Clarke said. The system is set to be completed in 2027, she said. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently announced $70 million for Indigenous clean energy projects. Ms Nolan said Indigenous communities wanted to help lead energy projects. "It's clear that now is the time to invest in First Nations communities and support access to capital and the resources needed," she said.
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AMPYR Australia secures funding for Wellington Stage 1 BESS
AMPYR Australia has secured funding above A$340m ($221m) for its 300MW/600 megawatt hours (MWh) Wellington Stage 1 battery energy storage system (BESS) project in regional New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Scheduled to be operational by 2026, the project will boost the supply of dependable renewable energy across Australia while reducing electricity costs for emerging industries. The financing package is supported by banking institutions the Bank of China, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, HSBC, Rabobank, Société Générale and the United Overseas Bank. AMPYR is also engaging with local Aboriginal communities around Wellington, offering investment opportunities in parallel with their ventures into sustainable projects. AMPYR aims to deliver more than 6 gigawatt hours (GWh) of energy storage projects by the end of 2030. This goal includes both stages of the Wellington project, with stage 2 adding a further 100MW/400MWh to reach a combined 1GWh capacity in the region by 2027. Supporting this development is a ten-year virtual power purchase agreement (PPA) between AMPYR and ZEN Energy Retail for 150MW of the projects' output. This arrangement offers AMPYR flexibility in managing its capacity contracts while allowing ZEN Energy to secure its commitments to sustainability-focused clientele. Fluence Energy will furnish and maintain the Wellington Stage 1 BESS project under a 20-year operational service contract using their advanced Gridstack technology and software solutions Mosaic and Nispera for revenue optimisation and asset performance management respectively. Lumea will facilitate connectivity with Transgrid's 330kV network at Wellington. Fluence APAC senior vice-president and president Jan Teichmann stated: 'We are thrilled to be partnering with AMPYR on the Wellington Stage 1 BESS, marking another step forward in strengthening Australia's transition to a more sustainable energy future. The full suite of Fluence's innovative storage products and operational services will allow AMPYR to extract the most value out of the Wellington Stage 1 BESS.' Backed by AGP, an independent global investor, AMPYR Australia continues to make progress in sustainable asset development across sectors including energy transition. AMPYR Australia CEO Alex Wonhas stated: 'Reaching the financial close of our first grid-scale BESS project in Australia marks a significant milestone in the acceleration of Australia's energy transition. "Supported by our high-calibre partners, ZEN Energy and Fluence, the Wellington Stage 1 BESS will play a critical role in an increasingly renewable grid whilst boosting Australia's energy storage capacity and supporting the delivery of low-cost energy to major users." Advisory services during financing were provided by Azure Capital as financial adviser and Ashurst as borrower's counsel. Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer acted on behalf of lenders. Corrs Chambers Westgarth advised on virtual toll agreements with ZEN Energy alongside diligence advisers from Ashurst (legal), Aurora (market), BMS (insurance), KPMG (tax), Mazars (model audit) and Worley (technical). In February 2025, AMPYR Solar Europe entered a PPA with ROCKWOOL to supply 50GWh of clean energy, to be sourced from AMPYR's new 96 megawatts peak solar facility in Noordoostpolder, the Netherlands. "AMPYR Australia secures funding for Wellington Stage 1 BESS" was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
