APA Group has taken a final investment decision to build, own and operate a major new mine energy infrastructure package in Mount Isa, Queensland. The AU$259 million investment covers the 72MW Sybella Creek Solar Farm and a 52MW/104MWh battery energy storage system, both designed to support power supply for one of Australia’s notable mining operations.
The project is backed by a long-term energy supply agreement with Ernest Henry Mining, a wholly owned subsidiary of Evolution Mining. The agreement will run through to mid-2046, providing Ernest Henry Mining with a reliable and diversified energy supply over the coming decades.
Evolution Mining’s Ernest Henry Gets New Mine Energy Infrastructure
Under the terms of the deal, APA Group’s existing Diamantina Power Station, a gas-fired facility in the Mount Isa region, will provide firming capacity alongside the new solar and battery storage assets. This arrangement is expected to support greater operational efficiencies at the Diamantina facility while broadening APA Group’s customer base in Mount Isa.
Construction of the Sybella Creek Solar Farm and the battery energy storage system is expected to begin in late 2026, with completion targeted for mid-2028. The project has not yet started construction, and the assets are not yet operational.
For Evolution Mining and Ernest Henry Mining, the agreement secures dedicated mine energy infrastructure combining renewable generation, battery storage and existing gas capacity under a single long-term supply contract.
104MWh Battery Supports Mine Power Supply
The 52MW/104MWh battery energy storage system will play a central role in firming the output of the 72MW solar farm. Paired with the gas-fired Diamantina Power Station, this combination of technologies is intended to deliver a more stable and efficient energy supply to the mine.
Ernest Henry Mining operates a significant copper-gold operation near Cloncurry in Queensland’s North West Minerals Province. The region has historically relied on islanded diesel and gas generation because it lacks a connection to the National Electricity Market.
That connection was originally intended to come through CopperString, a proposed 1,100km transmission line from Townsville to Mount Isa. However, cost estimates escalated from AU$1.8 billion to more than AU$13.6 billion under the previous state government. The current Queensland government scaled back the project, splitting it into an Eastern Link targeted for 2032 and a Western Link that remains under assessment with no confirmed construction commitment.
In response, Queensland established the AU$200 million North West Energy Fund, managed by Queensland Investment Corporation, to support localised energy solutions while the Western Link’s future remains unresolved. The fund’s approach requires proposals to stand on their own commercially, independent of whether the Western Link proceeds, with battery storage and other firming technologies expected to play a central role.
Queensland Project Combines Solar, Storage and Gas
The Sybella Creek project is not funded through the North West Energy Fund. However, it sits within the same broader effort to bring more reliable and cost-effective power to the region’s mining sector ahead of any grid connection. The project pairs new renewable generation and storage with existing gas infrastructure to serve a single large industrial customer under a long-term agreement.
This mine energy infrastructure approach reflects the practical reality facing mining operations in remote parts of Queensland. Without access to the national grid, operators like Evolution Mining must secure dedicated power solutions that balance cost, reliability and long-term supply certainty.
The combination of solar generation, a battery energy storage system and gas firming at Sybella Creek offers a model that other mining operations in the North West Minerals Province may look to replicate as the region’s energy landscape continues to develop.