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Pages tagged "solar"

Recognition of sovereignty and ownership: First Nations clean energy projects are changing the story

As clean energy becomes an ever-bigger driver of economic development, job creation and net-zero progress globally, First Nations are increasingly front and centre of the transition. 

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Diesel is expensive, smelly and noisy: Reducing diesel for solar in remote communities

I really want to see us put renewables into remote community energy systems and reduce the amount of diesel that we’re burning. 

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Solar power guiding NT families back to their community: AAP

A fundraising campaign raised $150,000 for the installation of a solar power energy system on Mumuthumburru (West Island), a small community off the coast of the Northern Territory's gulf region.

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First Nations benefit to be written into Future Made in Australia Act: Minister Chris Bowen MP

The Australian government has announced it will incorporate First Nations benefit as one of the key principles in the Future Made in Australia Act. Federal Minister Chris Bowen MP also wants to see more First Nations jobs, and ownership of and equity in clean energy projects.

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First Nations community solving long standing energy security problems with clean energy projects

The community of Marlinja in the Northern Territory is developing a microgrid. The 100kw solar array and 136kWh battery will be connected at the end of April.
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Access to energy is a right - but not if you're living in remote areas

Access to energy is a fundamental right. Yet land critical to Australia’s aspirations for becoming a green energy superpower are among the worst served by today’s electricity retail regulations.

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Wilya Janta Standing Strong fundraising for energy secure homes in the Barkly

Waramungu elders from the Wilya Janta (Standing Strong) housing collaboration are raising funds for two demonstration homes to be built in Tennant Creek. The houses will be solar-powered, well-insulated and water efficient.

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East Kimberley Clean Energy Project

The $3 billion solar and green hydrogen project proposed for the East Kimberley region of Western Australia is based on a new partnership between three traditional owner groups, the Balanggarra people through the Balanggarra Ventures Corporation (a subsidiary of Balanggarra Aboriginal Corporation RNTBC), the Yawoorroong Miriuwung Gajerrong Yirrgeb Noong Dawang Aboriginal Corporation (MG Corporation), and Kimberley Land Council, with clean energy investor Pollination.

The three First Nations groups will each have an initial 25% share in the new company they've formed - Aboriginal Clean Energy, with Pollination also having a 25% share.

The East Kimberley Clean Energy project will see a ~ 2,000-hectare solar farm developed on MG Corporation freehold land near Kununurra. The resulting solar energy (approximately 1,000 megawatts) will be combined with water and hydro energy from the existing Ord Hydro Power Plant at Lake Argyle to produce green hydrogen. The green hydrogen will be transported by pipeline to Balanggarra Country in Wyndham where it will be converted to green ammonia. The green ammonia will be sold locally as a fertiliser for irrigated agriculture, and will also be exported.

The East Kimberley Clean Energy project was announced in July 2023. 

In March 2024 the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) committed $1.6 million towards a feasibility study for the project. 

As of August 2024, the Aboriginal Clean Energy partnership had delivered the first phase of the feasibility study, according to the project’s Workforce and Capacity Building Report.

The partnership is hoping to start construction in late 2025, with the first hydrogen produced by late 2028.

 


Eight simple steps to attract investment and build First Nations engagement in Australia’s clean energy transformation

Governments in the United States and Canada have already realised that establishing the right partnerships with First Nations in the clean energy transition is an investment decision.

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Northern Territory Policy Overview: First Nations and Clean Energy

This paper was prepared to support conversations at the Mparntwe (Alice Springs) roundtable for the First Nations Clean Energy Strategy. The Northern Territory has some of the strongest solar radiation in the world and there is clearly much potential to develop clean energy projects on First Nations titled lands. 

Read the paper here

 

Special thanks to Christian Bass for use of the photo.