The Sunshine Coast Council in Queensland is planning to supply half of its total energy needs from a large solar farm announced this week.

Mayor Mark James said “The $24 to $30 million solar farm proposed to be built at Valdora near Coolum would meet half of council’s electricity needs for at least the next 30 years... over the next three decades council is expected to pay in excess of $110 million for electricity, and the solar farm would have the potential to reduce that by many millions of dollars.”

When the project is complete the Sunshine Coast Council will be the first in the country to draw energy from the sun on a utility scale. The Council also believes it will save them around $10 million over the life of the project. The benefits do not stop there; estimates say the project will create 40 jobs and inject $10 million in the economy over ten years.

The solar farm is set to add to the Sunshine Coast’s repertoire of energy-saving projects in its ‘cleantech industry hub’ initiative.

The Sunshine Coast Council will call for expressions of interest in the coming months to confirm cost and benefit estimates. The Council aims to begin construction in 2014, more information is available here.