That is the challenge Sun Cable has set for itself, developing the Australia-ASEAN Power Link, (AAPL). The AAPL integrates three main technologies which, when combined, will be capable of supplying 20 per cent of Singapore’s annual electricity, as a model for subsequently providing a large proportion of ASEAN’s overall renewable electricity needs. 

The AAPL will develop the world’s largest solar farm, together with a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cable extending from the desert near Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory to Singapore – some 3,800 km. The solar farm will have an array of 10 GW over a 15,000 hectare site. 

Already the company has announced the construction of a big battery in Darwin, with other batteries planned for other sites, at both ends of the HVDC cable.

Sydney-based engineering firm 5B’s solar farm construction technology – the Maverick – will be used throughout the farm. This world-leading technology combines modular design, prefabrication and rapid deployment. Built off-site and transported directly to the solar site by rail, the Mavericks will be deployed in under an hour.

The development of the AAPL will position Australia as a world-leading exporter of renewable energy and has the potential to create significant economic and sustainable energy opportunities for decades to come.