Yanara taps Gamuda to deliver hybrid solar and battery project

Yanara, a Dutch clean energy developer, has appointed Gamuda Australia to build the first stage of the Mortlake Energy Hub in southwest Victoria. The contract is valued at USD 554 million and covers design, procurement, construction and commissioning of a 435 MW solar farm paired with a 300 MW battery system. The battery specifications shifted during early contractor involvement: Stage 1 now includes 1,449 MWh of storage, up from the earlier 1,200 MWh figure. The full two-stage project will eventually deliver 450 MW solar and 600 MW of battery capacity. Connection will be to Victoria's 500 kV network via the existing Mortlake Terminal Station. Gamuda also expects to secure an operation and maintenance contract worth USD 30 million.

Where this fits

This project exemplifies the firming load now baked into Australia's renewable grid. A 435 MW solar farm paired with only 300 MW / 1,449 MWh of battery, a 4.5-hour duration system, cannot meet evening demand or survive multi-day cloud cover without external support, almost certainly from gas. The battery cost is substantial and the materials footprint (lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earths, silicon for the panels) sits entirely on China's processing and supply chain. Yanara's Dutch parent and Gamuda's Malaysian base mean design and control lie offshore; the renewable transition is being built by foreign capital following a foreign supply chain model.

What it means

Australia is pouring capital into storage systems that are expensive, weather-dependent, and embedded in a supply chain vulnerable to coercion. A 435 MW solar farm generates zero power at night and sharply reduced power in winter; battery alone cannot bridge weeks of low wind and cloud. Firm, domestically-controlled nuclear generation is banned by law, leaving Australia locked into gas for dispatchable backup and China for the materials that make renewables work.