EDP expands presence into Australia
Acquisition of local company enables development of wind, solar and storage energy projects. Australian market represents one of the greatest potentials in Asia-Pacific, a region where EDP Renováveis entered in 2022.
EDP, through EDP Renewables (EDPR), a global leader in renewable energy, has expanded its Asia Pacific presence into Australia to tap into the country’s substantial growth prospects in renewable energy.
To fully enact its strategy and commitment to the market, the company has acquired the local renewables company ITP Development (ITPD). As an integral addition to EDPR, the ITPD team is now part of EDP Renewables APAC.
EDPR views Australia as a market with strong fundamentals and ample depth in renewables. Leveraging the company’s well-established presence in the Asia Pacific region, EDPR is poised to excel by capitalising on ITPD’s local expertise as well as deploying its global scale, technical proficiency, and energy management know-how to Australia.
EDPR will focus on greenfield development of sizeable wind and solar projects coupled with innovative storage solutions in Australia.
This move is a strategic step that brings over 1.5 GW of capacity, with a pipeline of wind and solar projects at various stages of development with options to co-locate battery energy storage systems (BESS) in the east of Australia, particularly in New South Wales and Queensland. The portfolio also includes a 480MWp solar photovoltaic system and 200 MW BESS project, which is at an advanced stage of development in Queensland and is expected to enter into operation by 2026, contributing to Queensland’s net zero ambition.
With an ambitious decarbonization plan, Australia is one of the markets with higher potential in the region. With 38% of the total electricity generation from renewables, the country intends to achieve 82% renewable power by 2030 and fully replace coal with renewable sources by 2040 by adding 26 GW of new capacity. Australia is also one of the most advanced countries in storage regulation and implementation.
EDPR is increasingly focused on markets with favourable decarbonisation opportunities like Australia, Singapore, and Japan, amongst few others. With clear routes-to-market, regulatory stability, and robust climate targets, these core markets enable value maximization in renewables and are positioned as strategic growth areas for EDPR in the coming years.
Present in APAC since 2022, EDP Renewables has already installed 1.3 GWp (905 MWac) in solar capacity across the region in utility-scale projects, as well as distributed generation. The company is also investing in innovative solutions that can accelerate the region’s transition to cleaner sources, such as floating solar installations and solar and storage solutions that can power islands without access to the grid and are dependent on fossil fuels.
APAC is one of EDP’s group four regional hubs, which together account for more than 26 GW of installed capacity worldwide, of which more than 22 GW is in solar, wind, and hydro projects. The company aims to reach 50GW of renewable energy by 2030 to become a 100% renewable player.