Initial plans forecast that a new solar farm in the Northern Territory of Australia would produce up to 20 gigawatts of electricity, most of which would be exported to Singapore, and at a later point Indonesia, by a 4,300 km (2,700 mi) 3 GW HVDC transmission line.

[3] AAPowerLink has been developed by an Australian company Sun Cable, initially backed by Andrew Forrest and Mike Cannon-Brookes.

It was projected to begin construction in mid-2023, with operation starting in early 2026 and completion by late 2027,[1] and estimated to add A$8 billion to the economy of the Northern Territory.

[4][5] The project collapsed in January 2023, after Sun Cable was placed into voluntary administration following a disagreement between Forrest and Cannon-Brookes about the need to put more funding into the venture.

[6][7] In May 2023, a consortium led by Cannon-Brookes' Grok Ventures won the bid to acquire Sun Cable,[8] with the takeover finalised on 7 September 2023.

[9] The AAPowerLink begins with the development of the world's biggest integrated renewable energy zone, (which includes solar PV generation, energy storage and voltage source converter) on Powell Creek in the Barkly Region of the Northern Territory, using photovoltaic modules designed by Australian company 5B and prefabricated at a proposed factory in Darwin.

[31] The Financial Times reported that the administration was caused after lead investors Forrest and Cannon-Brooks "clashed... over the terms of a new funding round", itself necessitated "since the project started missing milestones".

[33] In May 2023, a consortium led by Grok Ventures and including Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners won the bid to acquire Sun Cable.