Joshua Bruce Lucas fronted Nowra Local Court on Monday charged with doing an act in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act, after he was arrest on Saturday over an alleged plot to bomb one of the state's electricity substations.

Police will allege Lucas has right wing ideologies including "anti-government, anti-Semitic, Neo-Nazi interests and anti-indigenous interests" which officers claim "evolved into ideologies of hate against lots of different groups".

Australian Federal Police, NSW Police and the NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team carried out joint raids on Lucas' Sanctuary Point Road and a rural property at Parma on Saturday, allegedly discovering tactical equipment, three soft gel (paintball) firearms and four registered firearms. They also seized a number of electronic devices.

It will be alleged police began monitoring Lucas in February after becoming aware of a number of online posts containing an extreme right wing and anti-government ideology.

Investigators will claim Lucas had tried to purchase military equipment, including firearms, and items capable of making improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

In court on Monday, police prosecutor Phil Morrison applied for and was granted a suppression order relating to some of the information contained in the statement of facts handed up to Magistrate Gabriel Fleming.

Lucas did not apply for bail during the brief mention of his case and it was formally refused.

In a joint press conference held on Monday morning, federal and state police said Lucas was not previously known to them.

"We really only identified him and our interest evolved in the last few months," AFP assistant commissioner Scott Lee said.

"Outside of that, he was not someone who had been an issue for us."

However, he said police took the opportunity to arrest Lucas after determining he "posed a real threat" to public safety due to his alleged online activity.

Ass Comm Lee refused to comment on what online platforms or pages Lucas had allegedly posted on, saying it was part of ongoing investigations, but did say those investigations would look at whether there was evidence of "people's involvement in the real world".

Lucas will reappear in court on May 11.