Energy»Australia to build World's largest solar power station

The station, which could have a total output of 1000megawatts, was announced by Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, on Sunday.

Mr Rudd backed the scheme with $1.4bn of public funds during a tour of a smaller facility.

It's thought the new plant would have around the three times the generating power of the next biggest site located in California.

The positive move comes two weeks after Australia received a green backlash for putting off plans to limit emissions for at least a year as the Australian Government focus on economic recovery.

Australia's vast natural resources have created a reliance on coal, the country's biggest export, and it currently has the highest per capita emissions in the developed world.

Tenders for the new scheme will be announced later this year, with successful bidders named in the first half of next year.