The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) will invest up to A$45 million ($29.4 million) in Fortescue’s Solar Innovation Hub in the Pilbara of Western Australia with aims to significantly reduce the levellised cost of utility-scale solar and accelerate its broader deployment.
The hub will serve as a 500 MW test bed for emerging technology within Fortescue’s planned 1.5 GW solar PV development pipeline. The project introduces a novel funding approach, trialling a portfolio of up to 10 individual projects deploying a range of technologies under one agreement aimed at cutting costs, demonstrating technical and commercial feasibility, and sharing knowledge across the solar PV and clean technology sectors.
ARENA CEO, Darren Miller, said the Solar Innovation Hub is a groundbreaking initiative that will help drive down the cost of solar energy in line with ARENA’s Ultra Low-Cost Solar (ULCS) vision, while paving the way for future innovations in the renewable energy sector.
Miller said: “Solar PV deployment is evolving as we find new ways to reduce costs, streamline logistics and adapt to challenging environmental conditions. These advances are helping to lower the levelised cost of energy (LCOE) and improve commercial viability for the heavy industrial and hard to abate sectors.
“This project also represents a new way for ARENA to provide funding, maximising our impact and fostering collaboration between Australia’s energy innovators. By creating a space where cutting-edge technologies can be tested and refined in real-world environments, we’re helping to deliver significant cost reductions as quickly as possible for the benefit of both industry and the climate.”
Fortescue has already launched two demonstration projects within the hub. The first, with Built Robotics, has trialled its automated pile-driving technology at the Cloudbreak Solar Farm (pictured), showcasing the potential for robotics to transform large-scale solar construction. The second, with 5B, will test its rapid-deployment Maverick solar technology onsite from early 2026. Both innovations are being evaluated at Cloudbreak and, if successful, are set to be scaled up in future stages of Fortescue’s solar development pipeline.
The hub is expected to produce high-value insights into cost drivers, validate multiple innovative technologies and identify pathways to commercialisation, ARENA says. Co-locating innovations within Fortescue’s Pilbara solar farms provides a unique opportunity to assess and compare the impact of different approaches in a single operational and environmental setting. The knowledge generated will support broader industry efforts to accelerate solar PV adoption in challenging contexts and contribute to ARENA’s strategic objectives around innovation and decarbonisation.
Fortescue Chief Executive Officer Metals and Operations, Dino Otranto, said: “This opportunity to work with ARENA is a strong endorsement of Fortescue’s commitment to pioneering renewable energy solutions at scale.
“The Solar Innovation Hub will allow us to trial and refine new technologies that improve safety, speed up delivery and drive down costs – helping us and Australia accelerate the transition to green energy.”
The Solar Innovation Hub supports ARENA’s ambitious ULCS goal of 30% module efficiency at an installed cost of 30 cents per watt by 2030. If delivered, Australia could reach a LCOE of <$20/MWh, which represents approximately one third of the cost of today’s solar PV. ARENA is also looking beyond 2030, through research and development activities that can drive further cost reductions through to 2040.
ULCS will also help us achieve our goal of accelerating deployment to reach 1 TW of installed solar PV in Australia by 2050.
