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Imagine choosing a peaceful rural life, only to have a LARGE-SCALE SOLAR and BATTERY facility plonked right next to you! That’s what’s happening between Bencubbin and Firgrove Estates in Dubbo where over 200 homes sit within a 2km radius of the proposed Hampton Park project.
The Hampton Park Solar & Energy Storage System (SESS) is just 7km southeast of Dubbo towards Wellington and 3km northwest of Wongarbon. It sprawls across 526 acres of prime Kurrajong farming agricultural land, a 180MW solar factory plus battery storage systems with up to 800MWh (4 hours of storage only) scattered across the site.
The masterminds behind this project? The landowner, and ARES—Australian Renewable Energy Services. Sounds local, right? Not quite. ARES popped up in 2023 and are not predominantly Australian owned.
Here’s what’s got us fired up:
- Lack of Community Consultation: and transparency from the proponent.
- Visual Disruption: Goodbye scenic rural views, hello industrial eyesore - thousands of solar panels, shipping container size battery storage, project transformer station and switch room, control room, maintenance facility, and lets not forget the 6ft high mesh fence.
- Environmental Damage: Local flora and fauna? Consider them collateral damage.
- Bushfire Risk: Lithium-ion batteries in a bushfire zone—what could go wrong?
- Limited Emergency Access: with only one road in and out of Bencubbin Estate.
- Noise & Light Pollution: Construction phase - earth moving machinery, thousand of metal post being driven into the ground over what could be up to a year or more, battery hums and solar panel glare aren’t exactly rural charm.
- Loss of Lifestyle & Privacy: We chose this location for serenity and peace, not perimeter patrols and CCTV.
- Property Value Plunge: We paid a premium to live in this rural residential location. If this project goes ahead, our property values will decrease, who would choose to buy a property overlooking a solar factory??
We are not opposed to renewable energy, we support it when done responsibly and located appropriately. For this project however, it positioned between two rural residential housing estates on Dubbo's doorstep!
THIS IS NOT AN APPROPRIATE LOCATION!
What’s Next?
The Scoping Report has been released. It’s the first step, the blueprint for the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), and it’s packed with technical jargon and developer spin. Our community members are not experts in planning law or environmental science, so to respond effectively we need to engage independent experts to decode it, challenge it, and help us respond with facts. Unlike these companies, as individuals we do not have bank accounts that will support this!
That’s why we’ve launched this GoFundMe! In addition to the funds we are all individually contributing towards this fight, the purpose of this GoFundMe is to help us, the Stop Hampton Park Solar and Energy Storage community, to raise funds so we can pay for the cost associated with engaging these professionals.
This is the first of many critical steps in the process, and we need your help please to make these steps count!
How You Can Help
- Donate any amount—whether it’s the just the cost of a coffee or a larger contribution, every dollar helps!
- Donate anonymously if you would prefer to.
- Share our page like the community depends on it—because it does.
Every dollar fuels expert reviews, professional submissions, and a stronger case to protect our homes, our land, our future, our community and the future of other communities facing the same battle as we are if we are able to use our case to set a precedent.
Thank You
Our community has been fighting this project since March 2025, and to be very honest it has drained us, emotionally, financially, and time-wise. But we’re not backing down because there is still a long way to go! With your support, we’ll show that communities like ours aren’t just speed bumps on the road to projects like this, they are the reason why the planning processes MUST change, and why good planning and appropriate site allocation for renewable energy projects should exist from the very beginning.
Help us prove that the prime agricultural land on Hampton Park deserves better than to be covered in solar panels and we as the community deserve better than to have this project forced upon us!
Please donate, share, and stand with us. Every cent counts!!