A new renewable energy developer is proposing to build a small solar and battery project east of Toowoomba, after the farmer reportedly sought them out as a way to exploit some unused land.
Future X Energy, one of a group of Queensland-based companies involved in commercial and residential solar installations, strata management, virtual power plants (VPPs), and electricity offers, is proposing to build what it’s calling the Koolkuna solar battery.
The 25 megawatt (MW) solar project and 90 megawatt-hour (MWh) battery is near a small town called Lilydale, and has attracted considerable online opposition to the proposal as it heads into community consultation.
Plans for the project were original submitted to the Lockyer Valley Regional Council in November 2024, and received 110 submissions from the public viewing process, a number that included multiple submissions from the same names.
Following the law change last year that requires all wind and solar projects bigger than 1 MW to secure a community benefits agreement with the local council before launching an application in a state-level planning process, the backers of the Koolkuna project plan to relaunch the planning application later this year.
