On behalf of the Australian government, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has announced $15 million in funding to RayGen Resources Pty Ltd (RayGen) to construct a solar-hydro power plant comprising 4 MW of solar PV generation and 3 MW/50 MWh of dispatchable storage capacity in north-west Victoria.
This is part of a $30 million project. The demonstration-scale facility will be located in Carwarp, Victoria near Mildura, and will export renewable electricity to the National Electricity Market. The project will participate in wholesale energy and Frequency Control Ancillary Services markets once operational, and is eligible for large-scale generation certificates.
The company has successfully completed a capital raise for $27 million in equity from parties including AGL, Schlumberger New Energy, Photon Energy, and Chevron Technology Ventures alongside new and existing investors. RayGen has also negotiated an offtake agreement for the project with AGL. The project builds on a feasibility study and development work supported by an ARENA grant of $3 million that was announced in March 2020. ARENA previously supported RayGen with a total of $8.67 million in funding to develop its PV Ultra technology and build the 1 MW PV Ultra pilot project in Newbridge, Victoria. The pilot project has been operational for over two years powering a local mushroom farm.
