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Silex in talks on big solar plant by: TIM BOREHAM From: The Australian July 18, 2013 12:00AM Increase Text SizeDecrease Text SizePrintEmail
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LISTED technology company Silex Systems has begun talks with financiers to build the country's biggest solar power station near Mildura in Victoria at an estimated cost of $250 million to $300m.
The federal and Victorian governments have conditionally committed $110m, and Silex chief executive Michael Goldsworthy said the rest would come from a mix of debt and equity.

At yesterday's official opening of the 1.5 megawatt pilot plant at Carwarp, near Mildura, Mr Goldsworthy said preliminary discussions had been held with specialist renewable funds, private equity and utilities.

"We need to have a financial package in place to get the (government) funding," he said.

As with the pilot plant, the planned 100MW facility will use Silex's patented "concentrating photo voltaic" technology. Unlike flat panels, this is based on satellite dish-like structures that magnify the sun's rays 1000 times, greatly increasing efficiency. The 17m high structures, which Mr Goldsworthy dubbed "silver sunflowers", follow the sun's trajectory throughout the day.

...Mr Goldsworthy said despite Canberra's changing approach to renewables, he was confident of obtaining $75m of funding promised by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.

"Even if we knew what was going to be in place in three years' time, our belief is that both sides of politics are committed to renewables in one form or other, whether it's a carbon price, an emissions trading scheme or renewable energy targets."

Mr Goldsworthy said he was unfazed by the Rudd government's decision to terminate the carbon price regime in favour of an ETS, which for the time being at least greatly reduces the cost of greenhouse gas pollution and makes renewables less competitive.

"We want to prove this technology stands on its feet without government incentives."

He said the full plant needed to achieve 10c per kilowatt hour, compared with 15c/kWh for the pilot plant and a conventional price of 25-30c/kWh.

Victorian Energy Minister Nick Kotsiras, who attended the opening, said his government, which has already provided $10m for the project to get to pilot stage, remained committed to providing $35m if Silex met operating and financial hurdles.

The full plant, capable of powering 35,000 homes, would easily be the country's biggest utility-scale solar plant and the only CPV plant in the southern hemisphere.

Silex acquired the project, first mooted 20 years ago, from Solar Systems for a knock-down sum after the former owner struck financial trouble in 2009.

Silex also has smaller pilot plants in Victoria and Queensland and plans to build a facility in Saudi Arabia.

However, Silex's $450m market worth is driven more by its revolutionary uranium processing technology