Industry News: Australia’s Largest Floating Solar Array is Underway! ☀️🇦🇺💧
Great news from Down Under for the floating solar sector! Melbourne-based renewable energy developer Enervest has commenced construction on a 500 kW floating solar photovoltaic (FPV) array at the Brierly Basin reservoir in Victoria.
Commissioned by regional water authority Wannon Water, this AUD 2 million project is set to become Australia’s largest floating solar installation once completed, directly offsetting the heavy energy costs of water treatment and pumping.
Key Engineering & Environmental Highlights:
🔹 Bifacial Advantage: The array features roughly 1,200 bifacial solar modules mounted on pontoons. By capturing sunlight from above and reflecting off the water’s surface below, the bifacial design boosts energy yield by up to 20%.
🔹 Dynamic Mooring: The pontoon system is secured by cables to bottom-fixed gravity anchors, specifically engineered to rise and fall seamlessly with the reservoir’s seasonal water level fluctuations.
🔹 Dual-Purpose Infrastructure: Beyond generating over 600,000 kWh of clean energy annually, the floating panels will shade the reservoir. This reduces water evaporation and curtails sunlight-driven algae growth, cutting down on chemical treatment needs.
🔹 Decarbonization: The project will reduce the water authority’s greenhouse gas emissions by more than 600 tonnes every year.
At SFSS, we love seeing water utilities globally recognize the immense potential of floating infrastructure. By utilizing existing water assets for renewable generation, we can bypass land-use constraints and build highly efficient, net-positive business cases for the Blue Economy! 🌊🔌
📖 Read more about the project here: https://now.solar/2026/08/16/enervest-begins-construction-on-australias-largest-floating-solar-array-pv-tech-org/
#FloatingSolar #FPV #Enervest #WannonWater #RenewableEnergy #SFSS #FloatingSolutions #BlueEconomy #MarineEngineering #WaterInfrastructure #SolarPower #AustraliaEnergy