Atlassian CEO’s $20B Plan To Build World’s Largest Solar Farm Wins Approval Despite Criticism 

Key Takeaways

• SunCable’s Australia-Asia Power Link project has gained approval from the Australian government.
• Atlassian CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes won a bidding war for SunCable last year. 
• The project will feature a 4,300 km submarine cable connecting electricity from Australia to Singapore.

The Australian government has approved a massive solar energy project that could export electricity to Singapore via a 4,300 km underwater cable.

The $24 billion project, led by Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes’s SunCable, involves building a vast solar farm and battery storage facility in the Australian Outback. If completed, it would be one of the largest renewable energy projects  in the world.

Electricity From Australia to Singapore

The project, known as the Australia-Asia Power Link (AAPowerLink), will feature a 46-square-mile solar farm in Northern Australia. 

AAPowerLink aims to produce energy by 2030, with the solar farm providing up to six gigawatts of electricity. 

The solar farm will run an 800 km cable to the Australian city of Darwin and 4,300 km underwater cables to deliver electricity to Singapore. 

“The Largest Solar Precinct in the World”

Tanya Pilbersek, Australia’s environment minister, said the approval was a “massive step towards making Australia a renewable energy superpower” and said the project would be “economically and socially transformational” for the Northern Territory. 

“It will be the largest solar precinct in the world and heralds Australia as the world leader in green energy,” Pilbersek said. “It shows that the energy transition is real, and it’s happening right now.”

According to Cameron Garnsworthy, SunCable Australia’s managing director, the final investment decision on whether the project would proceed was not expected  before 2027.

Garnsworthy said the government’s decision was a “landmark moment in the project’s journey” and a “vote of confidence.”

The Project Has Succeeded Through Disputes and Criticism

The SunCable project, which first emerged over six years ago, has managed to get through its first approval stages despite a tumultuous journey of disputes and criticism.

In 2023, SunCable went into voluntary administration  after billionaire investors Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest disagreed on the project’s direction. At that point, it looked like the project had collapsed as the two tycoons were locked in a $30 billion bidding war for the company.

Eventually, Cannon-Brookes’s Grok Ventures and Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners prevailed in taking control of the company.

In a 2023 LinkedIn post , Australian entrepreneur and submarine data cable expert Bevan Slattery heavily criticized the project’s potential.

Slattery claims he was invited to invest in the project but had to decline partially because the “risk matrix on this project was beyond my tolerances.”

“I was incredibly intrigued, but at the same time, I had concerns about the logistical, technical, and commercial challenges of the project. I could see so many challenges, it was daunting,” Slattery wrote.

Slattery explained that SunCable was planning to route the cable through the territorial waters of East Timor, Indonesia, and Singapore, “which are the most shipped, fished, and anchored waters in the world.”

He added that the cables would be “unrecoverable” should they be damaged, which is likely due to the sheer depths.

About the Author

Kurt Robson

Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN with a diverse background across several prominent news outlets. Having transitioned into the world of technology journalism several years ago, Kurt has developed a keen fascination with all things AI. Kurt’s reporting blends a passion for innovation with a commitment to delivering insightful, accurate and engaging stories on the cutting edge of technology.

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