Solar · Athena Energy Australia (Holdings) Pty Ltd · Solar PV - Fixed
16 May 2026 09:05 → 15 Jun 2026 09:05 AEST
| Capex total (greenfield) |
$293.25M
Shown in table How this was derived Reference |
|---|---|
| Capex refurbishment |
—
|
| Capex / MW derived |
$1,345,183
Shown in table How this was derived Reference |
| Fixed OPEX (annual) |
$3.06M
Shown in table How this was derived Reference |
| Fixed OPEX / MW-yr |
$12,000
Shown in table How this was derived Reference |
| Variable OPEX / MWh |
$0.00
Shown in table How this was derived Reference |
| Fuel cost / GJ |
$0.00
Shown in table How this was derived Reference |
| Heat rate GJ/MWh |
—
How this was derived Reference |
Confidence: medium · Status: ai estimated · Capex basis: estimated · AI checked 04 Jun 2026
Notes
The best source-backed capex figure found is a 20 February 2024 amended Capital Investment Value estimate for the Bendemeer Solar Farm of AUD 437.555 million excluding GST. This CIV scope includes the solar farm plus associated project works and explicitly includes BESS electrical works, substation/O&M/HV works, free-issue equipment, contingency and escalation/de-escalation; it is not a pure solar-only EPC cost. The capex_per_mw_aud field divides this CIV by the 218 MW capacity in the input record, so it should be treated as an indicative allocation, not a reported solar-only $/MW. Public project documents state a 255-257 MW DC solar field and 150 MW / 300 MWh BESS, while the input record states 218 MW and Solar PV - Fixed; project documents also state up to 5,000 single-axis trackers, creating a technology classification discrepancy. Fixed and variable O&M are not publicly disclosed for Bendemeer and are therefore benchmark assumptions from ACIL Allen / AEMC modelling for Solar PV SAT Oversized in real 2024 AUD. Direct operational emissions are assumed zero for solar PV combustion emissions; the owner separately states the project is expected to reduce emissions by about 420,000 tCO2 per year and generate about 577,000 MWh per year, implying avoided grid emissions of about 0.728 tCO2/MWh, but that avoided-emissions factor is not used as the direct emissions intensity. No major refurbishment plan was found. Closure/decommissioning: project facts state land agreements and consent conditions bind future owners to decommissioning and rehabilitation terms; AEMO/GHD generic solar retirement assumptions indicate 30-year economic/technical life and estimated PV retirement costs of about AUD 110,000/MW for a 200 MW AC single-axis tracking solar farm, but this is a generic benchmark rather than Bendemeer-specific financial provisioning.
Project-specific reported capital investment value is AUD 437.555 million excluding GST as at 20 February 2024, but this is for the amended Bendemeer Solar Farm project including the 255 MWdc / 200 MWac solar farm, 150 MW / 300 MWh BESS, substation, O&M and HV works, and associated infrastructure; it is not separable to the solar generator only. The profile capex therefore uses the AEMO/Aurecon 2024 large-scale solar PV benchmark of AUD 1.15/Wdc applied to the project-specific 255 MWdc solar size. The input record says 218 MW and Solar PV - Fixed, while current project materials state 255 MWdc / 200 MWac and up to 5,000 single-axis trackers; the normalised technology is therefore set to solar_tracking with a warning. Fixed O&M is estimated using the AEMO/Aurecon benchmark AUD 12,000/MWp-DC/year applied to 255 MWdc. Variable O&M is treated as 0 because AEMO/Aurecon states it is included in fixed O&M. Asset life is the AEMO/Aurecon benchmark 30-year economic/technical life, with possible extension to 40 years if piles do not corrode and spare parts remain available. Bendemeer project documents describe construction, operation and decommissioning and include reinstatement of full pre-project agricultural production following decommissioning. As of the sources found, the project was in detailed planning/assessment after submissions and amendments, and it was listed as awarded a CIS Tender 4 agreement in October 2025; no operational DUID or online date was found.
Bendemeer Solar Farm is not yet operational/registered with a public DUID in the sources reviewed; NSW Planning Portal status is 'More Information Required'. The owner site and NSW planning page currently describe a 255 MW DC solar farm with energy storage, while the user-supplied capacity is 218 MW, implying an AC capacity basis. The reported AUD 350 million capex is from a 2021 owner news item for a then-300 MW solar power plant; capex_per_mw_aud is calculated against the user-supplied 218 MW capacity. A later WT Partnership 2024 CIV estimate of AUD 437.555 million covers the Bendemeer Solar Farm project including BESS, substation/O&M/HV works, free-issue equipment, contingency and escalation, and is therefore included as a contextual source but not used as the solar-only capex_total_aud. Fixed O&M and variable O&M are not project-specific; they use Aurecon/AEMO solar PV defaults of AUD 12,000/MWp DC/year with variable O&M included in the fixed component. Official Bendemeer project materials indicate monocrystalline silicon panels using up to 5,000 single-axis trackers, conflicting with the user-provided 'fixed' technology label. Direct operational emissions intensity is set to 0 tCO2/MWh for solar PV; the owner separately states avoided emissions of 420,000 tCO2/year for 577,000 MWh/year, equivalent to about 0.728 tCO2/MWh avoided grid emissions, not direct emissions. Heat rate and thermal efficiency are not applicable to PV generation.