A cotton gin and bespoke solar farm in northern NSW are the first phase of a plan to make "green" cotton and sustainable fertilisers from clean energy.
Traceability, or being able to track a product through its supply chain, is a priority for consumers who want more information about all aspects of how their goods are produced.
A partnership of Australian agribusiness Sundown Pastoral Co and New Zealand hydrogen company Hiringa Energy is decarbonising cotton production after getting a NSW government grant of $35.8 million in March.
Sundown owner David Statham said the project would be a blueprint for low-carbon fertiliser production as global consumers start to demand sustainable food and fibre.
"Exemplifying how Australia can decouple agriculture from fossil fuel-driven fertiliser production, we'll also provide a credible pathway for heavy trucking to transition to low-emission transport," he said.
A 27-megawatt solar farm will power the seasonal ginning operations, feed excess electricity into the grid, and provide energy for making hydrogen and ammonia to replace diesel, bottled gas and nitrogen-based fertilisers.
The Wathagar Solar Farm project is being developed in stages, with the 9MW first stage that's up and running to be followed by two more similar-sized modules.
The next phase will involve the construction of a plant to use the solar energy to make green hydrogen and renewable ammonia.
"It will also drive employment growth by targeting the use of local staff and contractors," Hiringa spokesman David Heard said.
The project will operate at the Wathagar ginning facility site on the Keytah agricultural property, near Moree.
Keytah is one of the larger cotton farms in Gwydir Valley, covering 65000 acres, where Sundown runs a sustainable cropping operation.
