The government of Australian state Victoria will hold a 650 MW competitive reverse auction for renewable energy sources. The expressions of interest will start in October 2017. The reverse auction, one of the largest of its kind in Australia, is expected to trigger investment of about AUD 1.3 billion (USD 1.02 billion) in renewable projects and create 1,250 construction jobs over two years and 90 ongoing jobs.

The State of Victoria targets to reach a share of 25 percent of renewables within its power generation mix by 2020 and 40 percent by 2025, according to the new Victorian Renewable Energy Targets (VRET), introduced into the Parliament this week. According to an announcement, the VRET will cut the average cost of power for Victorians by around AUD 30 a year for households, AUD 2,500 a year for medium businesses and AUD 140,000 a year for large companies, while driving a 16 percent reduction in Victoria’s electricity sector greenhouse gas emissions by 2034.

The Labor Government also announced the winners of a tender to help build around 138 MW of new large scale solar projects to power Melbourne’s tram network. »Bannerton Solar Park« near Robinvale in the Sunraysia district is expected to provide 100 MW of solar powered electricity, while the »Numurkah Solar Farm« near Shepparton is expected to generate 38 MW. This will bring forward an additional investment of AUD 198 million and generate around 325 jobs in regional Victoria during construction.