Grong Grong Solar Farm / Haystacks Solar Garden

Pegasus Legal is advising its long-standing client, Komo Energy and Grong Grong Solar Farm comprehensively on the development, delivery, funding, maintenance and commercial operation of the 1.5MW solar farm with 2.3MW battery. 

The work included early-stage development, securing development approval and managing the legal & regulatory aspects of grid connection.  Pegasus Legal also supported the procurement process for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), supply chain, operation & maintenance (O&M) and asset management arrangements.

The Grong Grong Solar Farm hosts the Haystacks Solar Garden, an innovative commercial arrangement managed by the Haystacks Solar Garden Co-operative that allows “solar gardeners” to take up a notional 3kW “plot” and receive on-bill credits via a retail partner.  This project demonstrates a solar garden for the first time on a larger scale.  It is funded by the NSW Government under the Regional Community Energy Fund and is supported by Pingala and Community Power Agency.

The project also, for the first time in the Australian market, demonstrates the use of crowd-equity (crowd-sourced funding – CSF) to raise equity for an asset-based business such as a solar farm. The crowd raise was managed on the Birchal platform and closed successfully after raising $750,000 from more than 400 investors within just 8 days.