A planned new indoor snow centre, Winter Sports World, proposed for Penrith near Sydney in Australia will be entirely powered by a 1.2 megawatt power supply of photovoltaic solar cells on the roof, the team behind the project say.  That’s the equivalent of powering 220 homes with photovoltaic panels, feeding into an on-site battery storage facility.

The $300 million development will feature a 300m ski run, one of the world’s 20 longest, and a separate beginner run. The complex will also include an Olympic sized ice rink, ice climbing area, restaurants (one revolving), cafes and a 120-room hotel.

Local media reported that Winter Sports World was given preliminary approval earlier this year by Penrith Council to the surprise of some, as it is to be built in a location previously zoned for low-rise development only, and the top of the slope will reach 54 metres (177 feet). The plans received 60 objections including from some local homeowners who stated the development would put their houses in the shade for much of the year.

Australia was the location the world’s find indoor snow centre which opened in Adelaide in the late 1980s but closed in the early 2000s. Over 150 indoor snow centres have opened in more than 40 countries on six continents since. Another indoor snow area opened at a gold coast resort in the early 2000s and there have been proposals for other Australian indoor snow centres since, but currently the country does not have one and the only operational southern hemisphere indoor snow centres are in Brazil and New Zealand.

Winter Sports World’s developers hope construction will get underway next year, the facility open by 2024, and that it will have just under a quarter of a million visitors by 2025.