Rio Tinto will drive development of Australia’s largest solar power project near Gladstone, after agreeing to buy all electricity from the 1.1GW Upper Calliope Solar Farm to provide renewable power to Rio Tinto’s Gladstone operations.

The agreement will bring more renewable power into one of Australia’s most important industrial hubs and marks another step towards Rio Tinto’s climate goal of halving its global Scope 1 & 2 carbon emissions this decade. If combined with more renewable power and suitable firming, transmission and industrial policy, it could also provide the core of a solution to repower Rio Tinto’s three Gladstone production assets: the Boyne aluminum smelter, the Yarwun alumina refinery and the Queensland Alumina refinery.

Under a new power purchase agreement (PPA) signed with European Energy Australia, Rio Tinto will buy all power generated from the Upper Calliope solar farm for 25 years. The plant will be built and operated by European Energy, at a site about 50 kilometers south-west of Gladstone, pending development and grid connection approvals.

Once approved and developed, Upper Calliope would have the potential to lower Rio Tinto’s operating carbon emissions by 1.8 million tonnes per year.

Once approved, construction of the Upper Calliope plant is targeted to start in 2025 or 2026 and, when complete, it will provide enough electricity to meet about 5% of Queensland’s current demand. The plant, which is expected to take two years to construct, will cover 2400 hectares, employ 1000 people during construction and support 100 direct and indirect jobs when operating.

Upper Calliope is the first successful applicant in a formal Request for Proposals made by Rio Tinto for renewable power and firming projects in Central and Southern Queensland.