Australian renewable energy company Ark Energy has received approval for a financial investment decision (FID) on its planned A$1.3bn ($908.4m) Richmond Valley solar farm and battery energy storage system (BESS) in New South Wales (NSW).
Ark Energy’s parent company, Korea Zinc, approved the resolution at an Extraordinary Board Meeting in Seoul on 21 July 2026.
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The funding package comprises A$586m in equity and A$716m in debt financing.
The Richmond Valley Solar Farm and BESS mark the first instance in Ark Energy’s development pipeline where a build-to-own project has obtained an FID.
Financial close is anticipated in September 2026, with construction scheduled to begin the following month.
The start of operations is planned for January 2029.
Ark Energy secured planning, environmental approvals, grid connection and government support under a long-term energy service agreement during a four-year development process.
The current financing targets the project’s priority stage, which includes a 200MW-alternating current solar farm and a lithium-iron phosphate BESS with a power capacity of around 275MW and a storage capacity of 2.2GW-hours.
Ark Energy CEO Michael Choi said: “This approval represents a strong endorsement from Korea Zinc and confirms its continued commitment to supporting the Richmond Valley project and Ark Energy’s growth ambitions.
“We are thrilled to have reached this major milestone and look forward to moving the project into the next phase of financial close and construction.”
Planning approval was granted by the NSW Government in October 2025, followed by unconditional federal approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water in December 2025.
Grid connection was secured in June 2026.
In March 2025, Ark Energy reached a supply agreement with Hanwha Energy for the battery system and entered an Early Contractor Involvement agreement with Elecnor Australia in September 2025.
The company stated that the development is expected to support more than 850 jobs at peak construction and generate approximately A$180m in local expenditure.
