Pioneering White Cliffs Solar Power Station Earns State Heritage Listing

A pioneering solar power station in a remote outback town has been recognised for its rich history and contribution to the renewable energy industry with a listing on the State Heritage Register.

The White Cliffs Solar Power Station, located in the small opal mining town of White Cliffs in north-western New South Wales, was first established in 1981 as an experiment by a team from the Australian National University, with financial backing from the New South Wales government.

The station's 14 parabolic dishes, each 5 metres across with 2,000 small mirrors on their surface, concentrated the sun's rays to a central focal point to heat water and produce steam, generating up to 25 kilowatts of electricity.

Graeme Hanigan, who discovered the site on a tourist visit eight years ago, said: "My wife and I … drove into town and from the hills over there you can see these sparkling dishes,"

He added: "I had a tour of it and I said to my wife, 'This place needs preserving.'"

The White Cliffs Solar Thermal Power Station Friends Inc was formed on Mr Hanigan's initiative to preserve the site and its world-leading technology.

Mr Hanigan said: "It's been here for 50 years out of sheer luck, but it'll degrade, it'll fall apart and rust if we don't look after it,"

He also stated: "That's what's happened to all the other research plants around the world that were built at the same time."

Engineers Australia has described the station as equal in importance to the Snowy Mountains Scheme or the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Rob Dyson, a tour operator in White Cliffs, said the town was chosen for the solar power station due to its consistent sunshine, with temperatures regularly climbing to the mid-40s in summer.

Mr Dyson said: "[The researchers] went and put weather stations all around the state and they found that White Cliffs had the most daily average sunlight hours than anywhere else in NSW,"

He added: "It is the reason that we have what we have in the way of solar in the world today,"

Alexandra Boukouvalas, senior manager of heritage programs, said the state heritage listing would help put the site on the map and provide a drawcard for tourists to visit the region.

Ms Boukouvalas said: "State Heritage Register items tell the stories of NSW. That's a big drawcard for people to come into regional areas and experience what's important to all of us, as people for NSW,"

Mr Hanigan is hopeful the listing will drive tourism to the town, saying: "A little town like this relies heavily on tourism,"

He concluded: "[The listing] says this place is special and it's part of Australia's history."