A major oil and gas company has set to work building the Northern Territory's largest solar farm, with the $40 million project expected to be completed later this year.

Key points: The 70-hectare site near Katherine will house 100,000 solar panels with a 25 megawatt capacity

The 70-hectare site near Katherine will house 100,000 solar panels with a 25 megawatt capacity It is expected to boost renewable energy use in the NT by up to 4 per cent

It is expected to boost renewable energy use in the NT by up to 4 per cent Another proposal to build a 15,000-hectare solar farm in the Barkly region will become the largest solar project in the world

Italian-owned Eni Australia purchased the development from Epuron in February, and has been busy developing its 70-hectare site near Katherine.

Once completed, the facility will house 100,000 solar panels with a 25 megawatt capacity.

Managing director, Ernie Delfos, said the project was a strategic acquisition that fitted well with the company's other energy interests in northern Australia.

"The uniqueness of this project is it's actually going to be in synergy with what we're currently doing now from our gas resource in the offshore Bonaparte Basin, which brings gas to the Northern Territory," he said.

"Therefore people who are going to be consuming the renewable energy from here will have the reliability of a gas-fired power station to back it up."

Meeting renewable targets

Power generated from the site will feed into the main grid between Katherine and Darwin under a power purchase agreement with retailer Jacana Energy.

Eni Australia says the solar farm project will create 100 new jobs during construction. ( ABC Rural: Carmen Brown )

The deal is expected to boost renewable energy use in the Northern Territory by up to 4 per cent, supporting the NT Government's commitment to 50 per cent renewable energy by 2030.

Mr Delfos said, despite some early delays, the project was now on track to meet the supply obligations.

The NT's use of renewable energy will need to dramatically increase to reach the 50 per cent target by 2030. ( Supplied: NT Government )

"A lot of being able to put this project together relied on the permitting. It is the largest solar farm in the Territory," he said.

"And it is the first to be 100 per cent dedicated just to the power grid. The solar power here is not being used for nearby infrastructure.

"So getting all those permits in place by the original owner was crucial, and being able to then do the modelling to make sure that the power could be supplied into that grid took a while.

"That's all been put in place, and when we took over the project the only hurdle was to execute the project, which we're doing now."

A proposal to build a 15,000-hectare solar farm has been recently announced in the Barkly region which, if completed, will become the largest solar project in the world.