Gullen Solar Farm

The Gullen Solar Farm project is an operational solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant with an installed capacity of 10MW. The solar farm is co-located within the existing Gullen Range Wind Farm making Gullen Range the first large-scale co-located wind and solar farm in Australia. Locating the solar farm adjacent to the wind farm minimises required infrastructure (such as roads, power lines and telecommunications), meaning a reduction in environmental impact and project cost. Construction of the solar farm was supported by a grant from ARENA.

The solar farm consists of 42,000 solar panels and first generated electricity in 2017. It produces approximately 22,000 megawatt-hours of clean renewable energy each year, which is enough energy to supply approximately 3,100 NSW homes. The operating life of the solar farm will be 25 – 30 years.

BJCE Australia is proud to be a founding signatory of the Clean Energy Council’s Best Practice Charter for Renewable Energy Developments. The charter is a voluntary set of commitments to reflect our promise to develop and operate projects in a socially responsible way. The charter can be downloaded here.

Please feel free to contact us if you would like further information, or if you would like to provide feedback or lodge a complaint about the solar farm.

News

The latest solar farm news is below. You can view all our news here.

News item: 06/09/2023: Book your FREE tour ticket and visit Gullen Range Wind and Solar Farm

Get up close to a wind turbine and a solar array at our next public tour. The next tour will be held on Wednesday, 4 October 2023 at 11 am. To book your FREE ticket, please click here. To learn more about our tours click here.

 

News item: 25/08/23: August public tour at Gullen Range proves very popular

Public tours of the wind and solar farms at Gullen Range restarted this year, following the COVID period, and they are again proving very popular.

The August tour was fully booked, with a diverse group of people enthusiastic about taking part. Some had travelled from as far afield as Sydney and Nowra for this chance to get up close and personal with a wind turbine and learn more about clean energy production.

The group gathered for coffee and a background briefing in Crookwell before boarding the bus.  Asset Manager, Leo Pearce, provided an overview of BJCE’s local energy projects and answered wide ranging questions on route to the wind farm.

Sharing his decade of experience, Goldwind’s site technician, Darren, provided an abundance of information about the wind farm’s operations, while participants enjoyed the glorious sunshine. and extensive views from the Pom 1 turbine.

Next stop was the site office, where tour goers were fascinated to see the substation and the weather, turbine and energy monitoring equipment at work.

The bus then completed a circuit of the solar farm, stopping for photographs, before continuing back into Crookwell. The return trip was an opportunity to discuss the community fund, education and sponsorship programs BJCE runs in the district.

A light lunch concluded the tour with all agreeing it had been a very worthwhile morning.

The next free public tour will take place in October, with the date to be announced soon. If you are interested in joining a wind and solar farm tour, please register here.

 

News item: 31/07/2023: Seven Groups Share in Gullen Range Fund 2023/24 Community Fund

Seven community groups in the Upper Lachlan Shire will benefit from a combined $72,399.54 in grants from the Gullen Range Wind Farm Community Fund for 2023. The grants were assessed by the Gullen Range Wind Farm Community Fund S355 Committee and were approved in the June 2023 Ordinary Meeting of Council.

The grants will help to fund the following projects:

  • Anglican Church Parish – St Bartholomew’s Church – $24,847 for the supply and installation of solar panels
  • Anglican Church Parish – St George’s Church – $7,282 for removal of dangerous trees
  • The Australian Agricultural Centre – $10,000 for the Sheep Week 2023 event
  • Breadalbane Hall Committee – $1,000 for a stick vacuum cleaner
  • International Women’s Day 2024 – $3,500 for a Women in Agriculture event
  • Southern Tablelands Group 12 – $14,549.54 for iPads for the RFS officers
  • Upper Lachlan Landcare Inc. – $11,121 for building biodiversity skills

 

News item: 26/07/2023: July Community Newsletter

July 2023 Community Update is now available to read and download here. ←

 

News item: 25/07/23: Biala Wind Farm cheer the Crookwell Devils on at the Annual Sponsors Day

Last Sunday, Biala Wind Farm Asset Manager Lachlan Lamberton and Gullen Range Wind Farm Gustavo Siqueira attended the Crookwell Devils Sponsor Day at the Crookwell Memorial Oval. The She Devils had a win against the Bungendore Tigers 20-12 and the Senior Devils played in a Grand Final rematch against the Tigers and come away with a win 26-14. Well done Devils!

 

News item: 19/06/2023: Book your FREE tour ticket and visit Gullen Range Wind and Solar Farm

Get up close to a wind turbine and a solar array at our next public tour. The next tour will be held on Wednesday, 16 August 2023 at 11am. To book your FREE ticket, please click here. To learn more about our tours click here.

 

News item: 11/05/2023: May Community Newsletter

May 2023 Community Update is now available to read and download here.

 

News item: 28/02/2023: BJCE Australia is a proud Red Ribbon sponsor of the 2023 Crookwell Show

News item: 27/02/2023: 2023 Gullen Range Wind and Solar Farm Tours announced

News item: 09/02/2023: Biala Wind Farm back as a 2023 Major Sponsor of the Crookwell Green Devils