Industry-first integration
Create an industry-first renewably powered data centre and battery energy storage system, setting a new benchmark for sustainable digital infrastructure in Australia.
About the Project
An industry-first integrated renewable energy & digital infrastructure precinct.
Combining a 300MW IT load data centre, a 450MW / 3,600MWh battery energy storage system, and 100MW AC on-site solar — supported by renewable energy PPAs and a 132kV Ausgrid connection.
Phase
Planning & Approvals
Site area
~150 ha
Facility load envelope
450 MW
The Vision
Building Australia's clean energy future.
Hunter Horizon Park represents a new model for Australian infrastructure — one where renewable energy generation, storage, and high-performance computing operate as a single, integrated system.
Located within the Hunter–Central Coast Renewable Energy Zone, the precinct is designed to demonstrate that hyperscale data centre operations can be delivered through an integrated renewable energy strategy — combining on-site solar and storage with a 132kV grid connection and renewable Power Purchase Agreements — while delivering economic and environmental benefits to the surrounding region.
Why Hunter Horizon Park
The strategic rationale.
Australia's demand for sovereign AI capability and hyperscale digital infrastructure is accelerating. Hunter Horizon Park brings together the four things that matter most — power, connectivity, water, and people — on a single strategically located site.
01
Secured grid capacity
A 132kV Ausgrid connection supporting a 450MW facility load envelope — capacity of this scale is exceptionally rare in the Australian market.
02
Integrated renewable energy
100MW AC on-site solar and a 450MW / 3,600MWh BESS, with the balance of supply secured through renewable PPAs across Australia.
03
Sovereign-grade connectivity
Dual diverse fibre and carrier diversity via major telecommunications corridors — built for AI, cloud, and government workloads.
04
Sustainable cooling
Sub-1.0 GL per annum cooling solutions, including recycled water, developed with regional water infrastructure partners.
05
Location & workforce
An established industrial precinct in the Hunter–Central Coast REZ, close to Newcastle Airport, RAAF Williamtown, and the Port of Newcastle — with a skilled regional workforce.
06
National significance
Positioned to anchor Australia's Generation AI capability with sovereign data storage and defence-ready digital infrastructure.
Objectives
Five key project objectives.
Integrated energy strategy
Establish a scalable, integrated renewable energy facility capable of supporting continuous operations with significantly reduced reliance on the external grid.
Modular high-availability campus
Develop a modular, high-availability data centre campus designed for hyperscale cloud, defence applications, and advanced AI workloads.
Regional economic uplift
Enable long-term regional benefits through direct investment, vocational training pathways, and the attraction of advanced technology industries to the Hunter Region.
Replicable national model
Showcase a replicable model for integrated clean infrastructure precincts that can be adapted and deployed across Australia.
The Precinct
Four co-located infrastructure components.
Each component is designed to complement the others, creating an integrated system greater than the sum of its parts.
01 · 100 MW AC · Photovoltaic
Solar Farm
02 · 450 MW / 3,600 MWh · BESS
Battery Storage
03 · 300 MW IT · Hyperscale
Data Centre
04 · Dual Diverse Fibre · Carrier Diversity
Telecommunications
01 / Solar Farm — 100 MW AC
Captured at the source.
A 100MW AC solar photovoltaic facility providing on-site generation for a significant portion of the precinct's renewable energy needs. The balance of renewable energy supply is secured through Power Purchase Agreements with renewable energy projects across the country.
The Hunter Region's strong solar irradiance profile makes this location ideal for large-scale photovoltaic development, with output consistent with NSW Government projections for the Renewable Energy Zone.
Photovoltaic12 month construction
02 / Battery Storage — 450 MW / 3,600 MWh
Stabilised, then dispatched.
A 450MW / 3,600MWh Battery Energy Storage System — one of Australia's largest proposed battery systems. The BESS provides renewable energy firming, peak demand reduction, grid support services, and long-duration storage.
This underpins data centre resilience and supports continuous operations with significantly reduced reliance on the external grid, while contributing to the broader Hunter–Central Coast Renewable Energy Zone objectives.
Grid-Scale BESS4 month construction
03 / Data Centre — 300 MW IT
Hyperscale, sovereign, secure.
A hyperscale campus with a 300MW IT load within a 450MW facility load envelope — purpose-built for sovereign AI, hyperscale cloud, high-performance computing, sovereign data storage, and government and defence workloads.
The modular design allows capacity to scale incrementally as demand grows, supported by the precinct's integrated energy strategy. The facility is designed to Tier III+ availability standards.
High-Density AI / Cloud6 month construction
04 / Telecommunications — Dual Diverse Fibre
Connected, end to end.
Dual diverse fibre paths with carrier diversity and access to major telecommunications corridors and multiple providers — delivering the low-latency, high-resilience connectivity required for AI, cloud, and sovereign data workloads.
Diverse routes and carrier redundancy ensure connectivity is never a single point of failure for the precinct's operations.
Dual Diverse FibreCarrier DiversityLow Latency
Region
Hunter Region · NSW
Infrastructure
Integrated energy, on-site.
Water & Cooling
Sustainable cooling by design.
The precinct's cooling strategy targets sub-1.0 gigalitres per annum through closed-loop cooling solutions — including the use of recycled water — developed in partnership with regional water infrastructure providers.
Annual water use
Sub-1.0 GL
Approach
Closed-loop & recycled water
Partnership
Hunter Water
Location
Strategic location facts.
Hunter–Central Coast REZ
Within a 1 GW priority renewable energy zone with planned transmission upgrades.
25 km from Newcastle CBD
Approximately 30 minutes drive to one of Australia's largest port cities.
132kV Ausgrid connection
Secured grid connection supporting a 450MW facility load envelope.
Hunter Water substation
Adjacent water and electrical service connections reduce site enabling works.
Pacific Highway access
Direct access via the Heatherbrae Bypass for construction logistics.
Strong solar irradiance
Hunter region irradiance profile supports utility-scale photovoltaic output.
Newcastle Airport & RAAF Williamtown
Close proximity to domestic aviation and one of Australia's most significant defence precincts.
Port of Newcastle
Proximity to a major deep-water port for equipment delivery and logistics.
Skilled regional workforce
Access to the Hunter's engineering, energy, and technology talent base.
Telecommunications corridors
Access to major telecommunications corridors and multiple carriers.
Dual diverse fibre
Diverse fibre paths delivering low-latency, high-resilience connectivity.
Established industrial precinct
An existing industrial context with services, access, and complementary land uses.
Planning
Planning & approvals pathway.
A regulated, transparent path through the NSW planning system to ensure responsible development.
State Significant Development
Application under SEPP (Planning Systems) 2021, reflecting the project's scale and regional significance.
Planning Proposal
Amendment to Port Stephens LEP 2013 to rezone approximately 56–58 hectares from RU2 (Rural Landscape) to E4 (General Industrial).
Strategic Alignment
Consistent with the Raymond Terrace and Heatherbrae Strategy 2015–2031 and the Hunter Regional Plan 2041.
Project Status
Where the project is today.
Scoping & planning approvals
The project is progressing through the scoping and planning approvals phase, with detailed design development underway.
Grid connection studies
Detailed grid connection studies are underway with Ausgrid for the 132kV connection supporting the precinct's 450MW facility load envelope.
NSW SSD process
The project will be assessed under the NSW State Significant Development process, providing a rigorous and transparent approvals pathway.
Investment Highlights
A generational infrastructure opportunity.
Hunter Horizon Park combines secured 450MW grid capacity, an integrated renewable energy strategy, sovereign-grade connectivity, and a strategic Hunter Region location — at a time of unprecedented demand for AI and digital infrastructure in Australia.
Detailed investment highlights will be published as the project progresses. For investor enquiries, contact our team directly.
investors@hunterhorizonpark.comScale
300MW IT · 450MW envelope
Energy
Solar + BESS + Grid + PPAs
Sector demand
Sovereign AI & Cloud