Andrew Forrest’s iron ore and emerging green energy giant Fortescue says it is confident that it can build bespoke green grids faster and at lower cost than its competitors, as it continues to eye opportunities for data centres, green ammonia and green steel.
The company is now well on its way to building the country’s first dedicated multi-gigawatt scale green grid in the Pilbara that it says will involve no fossil fuels as it powers its huge iron ore mines and the electric trucks and mining equipment used in them.
It has recently started construction of the 690 megawatt (MW) Turner River solar farm, taking its total solar capacity under construction to more than a gigawatt – meaning it now has more solar under construction than any renewable energy developer in the country.
It has also started work on its first wind farm, the 132 MW Nullagine project that will feature the country’s tallest and most powerful turbines, mounted on unique “self lifting” tower technology developed by the Spanish company Nabrawind that it now owns.
Wind projects in other parts of Australia often have to wait months or more than a year for turbine parts to be delivered, often at great expense and with complex logistics and regulatory restrictions as they negotiate highways and hilly terrain.
