Adani Group's Oz arm signs power purchase pact

Billionaire Gautam Adani, whose group is vying to build Australia's largest coal mine, today said his company has signed its first power purchase agreement for a solar farm near a central Queensland mining town.

Adani Group plans to build a 100-200 MW solar plant on a 600 hectare land parcel that was formerly part of the Rugby Run grazing property near Moranbah.

"A great moment & major milestone, @AdaniAustralia signs first Power Purchase Agreement #PPA for the first phase of Solar farm at #RugbyRun," he tweeted.

He, however, did not give any details of the project.

The group had previously stated that the Rugby Run solar farm would be one of the world's most advanced solar energy plants and involve an investment of USD 200 million.

Its plan to develop Carmichael coal mine in Queensland's Galilee Basin has been bitterly opposed by environmentalists.

Rugby Run is the first of a number of solar projects Adani is eyeing to provide up to 1500 MW in Australia within the next five years.

The projects are part of plan to balance coal-fired power generation with renewable energy.

Adani had previously announced that the Rugby Run plant would be completed within 12 months of commencement.

The firm has built about 800 MW of solar generating capacity in India, including a 648 MW facility in Tamil Nadu which is one of the world's largest solar plants.

(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)