NEGOTIATIONS are underway between Swan Hill council and an unnamed company for a proposed medium to large-scale solar energy generation facility at Blackwire Reserve.
About 30 applications were made in a tender process for development of the facility, which is intended to grow the renewable energy industry locally and boost the economy by creating jobs.
Council will be able to use the findings as a major selling point in attracting potential investors to the region.
Planning for a potential solar farm at Blackwire Reserve has been ongoing for some time but Swan Hill Rural City Council director of development and planning Brett Luxford said there had been recent “positive” steps forward.
“We are in final negotiations and it’s looking quite positive,” Mr Luxford said.
“We’ve been working with them to identify whether the site suited their needs and taking due diligence to decide what their ability is to deliver on what their saying the want.”
Mr Luxford said solar energy was a burgeoning industry and the clear skies of the Mallee were ideally suited to it.
Blackwire Reserve is especially well suited as it is flat, agricultural land with good electrical network capacity, council has said.
For the full story, pick up a copy of Wednesday’s Guardian (July 23).
