VOA新闻杂志2024--Australia Moves Forward with Major Renewable Energy Project

A plan to build a huge solar farm in Australia is a step closer after the Australian government gave environmental approvals for the $19 billion project recently.

Australian company Sun Cable plans to build a 12,400-hectare solar farm in a remote area of northern Australia. The farm will send electricity to the city of Darwin via an 800-kilometer overhead transmission line. Then the power will be transported to large industrial customers in Singapore through a 4,300-kilometer submarine cable.

The Australia-Asia PowerLink project aims to deliver up to 6 gigawatts of green electricity each year. Such a project, Australian Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek suggested, would "help turn Australia into a renewable energy superpower" and boost its economy.

Plibersek said in a written statement, "It will be the largest solar precinct in the world..."

The project was first backed by Australian mining businessman Andrew Forrest and Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes. The plans were discussed during a state visit by then-Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as part of a "Green Economy" agreement in 2022.

In January 2023, the project collapsed¹ when Sun Cable was involved in a financing dispute between Forrest and Cannon-Brookes. By May of that year, a group led by Cannon-Brookes' Grok Ventures acquired the company, finalizing² the takeover in September 2023.

SunCable Australia's managing director Cameron Garnsworthy said it was pleased to have cleared a major legal issue. He added that the company will now put its efforts into the next stage of planning to work towards "a Final Investment Decision targeted by 2027."

The company said electricity supply would begin in the early 2030s.

Energy has been a politically charged issue for nearly 20 years in Australia. The country depends on coal and gas as well as money from exporting those fuels to help support its economy.

This dependence³ on fossil fuels has historically made it one of the world's worst greenhouse gas emitters on a per capita basis.

Australia's main opposition⁴ party in June announced plans to build the country's first nuclear power plants as early as 2035. The announcement ensures the major parties will be divided on how to reduce Australia's greenhouse gas emissions⁵ at elections due within a year.

The parties have not gone to an election with the same carbon reduction policies since 2007.

Words in This Story

customer -- n. one that buys a good or service

boost -- v. increase, raise

precinct -- n. a part of a territory with definite bounds often established for administrative⁶ purposes

fossil fuel -- n. a fuel (such as coal, oil, or natural gas) formed in the earth from plant or animal remains⁷

greenhouse gas -- n. any of various gaseous compounds (such as carbon dioxide or methane) that absorb infrared radiation and trap heat in the atmosphere

1 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

2 finalizing   

vt.完成（finalize的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• You may edit registered information any time during the finalizing period. 您可以在规定期限内随时编辑修改注册资料。 来自互联网
• Natsun Trimming & Ironing, Finalizing the Perfection. 40南山整烫，完美在此定格。 来自互联网

3 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

6 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。