Queensland switches on large solar farm as NBN signs offtake slice

• A 255,000-panel solar farm near Gympie and Maryborough has gone live, with NBN Co buying over 20% of its output via PPA.

Queensland has brought online a large solar farm near Munna Creek, roughly equidistant from Gympie and Maryborough, featuring about 255,000 panels across 467 hectares. The site will power an estimated 41,000 homes, and Australia’s national broadband operator, NBN Co, has committed to purchase more than 20% of the output to meet its 100% renewable electricity goal. The project created around 150 construction jobs and arrived with the usual logistics footprint—heavy equipment, road wear—that developers say they are addressing with local authorities.

Beyond headline megawatts, the farm’s value is grid-specific: strong midday supply in a region where summer peaks and tourism strain lines. With single-axis trackers and modern plant controls, the project will stretch shoulder-hour yield and provide reactive support per grid code. A future battery add-on would enable time shifting into evening peaks and frequency response, boosting capture prices.

Corporate participation remains central to Australia’s solar story. NBN’s deal follows similar PPAs in New South Wales and Victoria, illustrating how large electricity buyers lock in price certainty and emissions reductions while underpinning project finance.

As Queensland eyes more large-scale storage and transmission upgrades, this plant is another modular block of clean capacity—built to modern specs and bankrolled by offtake that aligns public goals with private execution.