Wind in the Bush: The most
informative, comprehensive, and up-to-date pages on Australian wind
power and wind farms
This page created 2008/02/29, modified 2009/09/16
Information about wind farms that I have missed, additional interesting
information,
or corrections for
anything that I have got wrong, would be greatly appreciated.
About these pages
Contact: email daveclarkecb@yahoo.com
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Climate change
is the greatest threat facing the world today;
wind generated electricity is one of a number of ways that we can
reduce our reliance on fossil fuel-generated electricity and therefore
reduce our greenhouse gas production and limit climate change.
I will be pleased to hear from any reader who believes that anything in any
of these pages is incorrect or substantially incomplete.
Please send details, with appropriate references, to the email address
above.
Any suggestions on how these pages can be more informative will also be
appreciated.
Wikipedia gives some
information on proposed and operating wind farms in Victorian.
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| Wind Resource Map of Victoria
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Key: Average yearly wind speed (metres per second at 65 metres above
ground)
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Acknowledgement to
Sustainability Victoria
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The map on the right is a wind resource map of Victoria.
It shows that the best wind resources are along the southern coast and
in the higher altitude areas.
Most of Victoria's wind farms are being built along the southern coast
and around the Ballarat, Ararat, Hamilton area.
Victoria has some of the best wind resources of Australia.
The policies of the Howard Government stopped these resources from being
developed (none of the wind farms built before 2008 was large, and
the total installed capacity in February 2008 was around 130MW.
But the situation is changing; as of mid 2008 two wind farms with
capacities over 100MW
each were under construction, several more had been approved, and more
again proposed.
In September 2008 Victoria had a 2% mandatory renewable energy target,
(VicRET) but the government had proposed increasing that to 10%.
Operating Victorian wind farms, megawatts
As of June 2009
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Note that the wind farms listed here as proposed or approved will not
necessarily ever be built.
You can't be sure that anything is going to be built until it starts
happening.
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Cape Bridgewater wind farm, under construction
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Colour coding for
wind farm status
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| Proposed
| | Approved
| | Under construction
| | Operating
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Note: Latitudes and Longitudes are given below in decimal degrees.
They are given to two decimal places because this defines the location
to ±1km; a wind farm is a large thing and typically covers a
number of kilometres.
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As of June 2009
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| | Wind farm location from RES Australia's news letter
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Proposed by RES Australia, this wind farm is close to one proposed by
Pacific Hydro at
Crowlands.
RES has a not very informative
page on the proposal; although a newsletter available from this page
is moderately informative.
Ararat wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Proposed | 76 | Up to 3 | Up to 228
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.23° | E 142.99°
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The Victorian Minister for Planning determined on 14th January 2008 that
an Environmental Effects Statement is not required.
RES has announced its intention to prepare a Planning Permit Application.
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Acknowledgement: map from Wind Power
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The sight of this proposed wind farm is near Tarwin Lower, 20
kilometres west of Wilsons Promontory and 150km
SE of Melbourne.
This is the wind farm that became famous for being at first blocked by
Federal Environment Minister Ian Campbell because of a alleged threat
to the endangered orange bellied parrot, and then OKed when it became
apparent that the proposed wind farm posed no threat to the parrot.
The proposer is Wind Power (who have a
page
on the farm and are now fully owned by Origin Energy).
It was announced on 10th June 2008 that the Japanese company Mitsui had
acquired the project through its Australian subsidiary.
Mitsui said that the project should be in commercial operation in 2011.
Bald Hills summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each
| Total MW
| Construction date | Project cost
| Lat.
| Long.
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| Approved | 52 | 2 | 104
| 2010 | Estimated Aus$250 million
| Approx. S 38.86° | E 146.00°
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Status and construction date confirmed by Ross Richards
Major Development Projects, Windpower, 2009/06/09
Additional data on Bald Hills
The following changes have been made to minimise the impact of the
wind farm
| Turbine height | Not greater than 110m overall
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| Closest (non-project) residence | 944m from nearest turbine
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| Closest turbine to Wetland Reserve | App. 300m
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| Closest turbine to Cape Liptrap Coastal Park | 450m
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Closest turbine to coast
in vicinity of Cape Liptrap Park | 2000m
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Acciona Energy has proposed this wind farm 70km NW of Bendigo between St
Arnaud and Wedderburn.
Much of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
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Berrimal wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 12-16 | ? | Max. 24
| Undecided | Approx. S 36.53° | E 143.46°
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On Feb. 17th 2009 Brett Thomas, a representative of Acciona, said that
"the project is on hold while the Federal Government prepares its emissions
trading and renewable energy policies".
My information is that the status of this wind farm, as of
2009/06/04, is 'on hold'.
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This large wind farm is proposed by Union Fenosa
Wind Australia (UFWA) who have a
Net page
on the project and have produced a newsletter.
As of November 2008 UFWA was "working with local stakeholders to develop
the planning application".
Berrybank is about 15km east of Lismore and ten kilometres west of Cressy.
Berrybank wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Proposed | 100 | 2 to 3 | 200 to 300
| Undecided | Approx. S 38.00° | E 143.54°
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The coordinates above are for Berrybank township
I have emailed UFWA asking for more specific information on the location
of the wind farm (2009/04/21).
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This wind farm is located on a north-south trending line of hills west of
Ararat, 190km
WNW of Melbourne,
in western Victoria.
For an interactive map and/or directions to Challicum Hills go to ExplorOz.
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Challicum Hills wind farm (turbines faintly visible along sky-line)
from The Grampians before sunrise.
This photo was taken from Boroka lookout, which is about 62km from the
turbines.
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Challicum Hills summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Annual production
| Commissioned | Lat. | Long.
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| Operating | 35 | 1.5 | 52.5 | 140 GWh | 2003
| S 37.40° | E 143.11°
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The information in this table came from a variety of sources including
Pacific Hydro.
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Challicum Hills wind farm
Photo taken in April 2008
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Further data from Pacific Hydro, the owner and operator of
Challicum Hills wind farm...
Visiting Challicum Hills wind farm
There is no public access to the range where the turbines are.
This is a pity, it greatly diminishes the potenitial for good views.
However, there is a sign-posted scenic drive around the range and there are a
couple of spots along this from which fair views can be had.
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Codrington turbines from the northwest early on a grey morning
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Located near Port Fairy on Victoria's south west coast
(260km east of Melbourne), Codrington was
Pacific Hydro's first wind
farm development and, I believe, the first substantial wind farm in the
eastern states of Australia.
When commissioned it was Australia's biggest wind farm.
The turbines are spread along the top of a stable sand dune paralleling, and
close to, the Southern Ocean.
For an interactive map and/or directions to Codrington go to
ExplorOz.
Visiting Codrington
While the Princes Highway passes within a few kilometres of the wind farm
it is not possible to get close to the turbines on any public roads.
I believe tours are available.
Perhaps the best views from a public road can be seen from a short
no-through-road off the highway toward the sand dunes at the NW end of
the wind farm.
Note that this wind farm is adjacent to Yambuk, with no obvious boundary
between the two.
Codrington summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Annual production | Completed | Lat. | Long.
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| Operating | 14 | 1.3 | 18.2 | 51GWh | June 2001
| S 38.28° | E 141.96°
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The information in this table came from a variety of sources
including Pacific Hydro.
Also see Pacific Hydro's page on
Codrington.
Further data from Pacific Hydro, the owner and operator of
Codrington wind farm...
| Capacity factor | 32%
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| Availability | 98%
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| Wind generators | AN Bonus
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| Project cost | Aus$30 million
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| Power purchase agreement | Origin Energy
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| Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at 71 000 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
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| Tower height | 50m
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| Rotor diameter | 62m
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| Start-up wind speed | 3m/sec, 10.8km/hr
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| Shut-down wind speed | 25m/sec, 90km/hr
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Pacific Hydro has proposed this wind farm for a site 25km
NE
of Ararat in western Victoria.
(Ararat is 190km
WNW of Melbourne.)
The turbines will be along the ridgeline between Glenlofty and Crowlands.
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Crowlands summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Proposed | Up to 75 | 2.3 | Up to 172.5
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.13° | E 143.16°
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Further data on the Crowlands wind farm
| Project cost | Aus$360 million
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| Greenhouse gas saving | 380 000-560 000t/yr
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| Annual production | Up to 430GWh
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The information in these tables came from a variety of sources including
Pacific Hydro.
The Planning Panel finished its investigation on 15th February 2008.
Pacific Hydro's Andrew Richards said that he was confident of the project
getting approval.
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Also known as Yarram wind farm
The site of this proposed wind farm is about 10km NW of Yarram and 20km
from the coast in south Gippsland.
The nearest large town is Traralgon, 44km to the north, and it is 170km
ESE of Melbourne.
Synergy is the
proposer of this wind farm.
Some of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
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Devon North (Yarram) summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 7 | 2 | 14
| Late 2009? | Approx. S 38.50° | E 146.55°
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Synergy's Net page states that the turbines will be installed in
2010.
There seems to be more opposition to this proposal than most.
On 21st December 2007 the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal
over-ruled objections by some local residents, landholders, and the Shire
Council and gave the project the go-ahead subject to it meeting 22
conditions.
(This from a report in the
Gippsland Times.)
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Also known as Purnim
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There seems to have been little or no activity on this project for several
years (as of October 2008).
The developer is Wind Farm Developments who have a Net
site on the wind farm.
The wind farm is to be 3km north of Purnim, which is about 17km NE of
Warrnambool and 220km SSE of Melbourne.
Much of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
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Drysdale wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 13 | 2.3 | 30 | Undecided
| Approx. S 38.28° | E 142.62°
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The proponent is Gamesa Energy Australia and TME Australia P.L.
The proposed wind farm is 50km SE of Hamilton and 30km NW of Warrnambool.
Most of the information for this wind farm came from a report available
via
TME Aust.'s
Projects page.
It was dated September 2006.
The area has been substantially cleared and is currently used for
grazing.
The site is generally bound by the Woolsthorpe-Heywood Road and the
Penshurst-Warrnambool Road.
It is dissected by a disused rail reserve in the eastern part.
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Hawkesdale wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 31 | 2 | 62
| Undecided | Approx. S 38.12° | E 142.34°
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Additional information on Hawkesdale
| Project cost | Around Aus$130 million
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| Annual generation | Estimated 163GWh
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| Annual CO2 abatement | Estimated 332 thousand tonnes
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| Tower height | 78m
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| Rotor diameter | 87m
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| Blade length | 43.5m
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| Total height | 121.5m
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The ABC on-line news carried the following on 2008/08/25...
"The Victorian Government has confirmed a 68-turbine farm at Ryan's
Corner, near Port Fairy, and a 31-turbine farm near Hawkesdale, will
go ahead."
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This proposed wind farm will be in the vicinity of Lal Lal, 25km SE of
Ballarat.
There will be two sections, one just north of Elaine (south of
Lal Lal, 40 turbines) and the other east of Yendon (north of Lal Lal
and 24 turbines).
The proposer is
WestWind, from whose Internet
pages, especially
Lal Lal wind farm,
most of this information came.
Westwind has a planning permit for the wind farm.
WestWind released an independently carried out study on 1/10/2007.
The study was conducted in November 2006 and showed, they say, that at that
time more than 80% of the community around the wind farm supported the
proposed construction.
West Wind had an office in Buninyong until 4th June 2009, they then moved
it to Mt Helen.
The Moorabool Leader on-line news reported, on 24th June 2008, that six of
the proposed turbines
will be relocated due to discovery of Aboriginal artifacts.
West Wind Energy representative Adam Gray said on Feb. 17th 2009 that he
did not feel that financing the project would be a problem.
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Lal Lal summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 64 | 2-3 | 128-192
| Undecided | S 37.71° | E 144.01°
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Further data on Lal Lal wind farm...
| Wind farm sections
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| Name | Lat. | Long
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| Elaine | S 37.76° | E 144.00°
| | Yendon | S 37.64° | E 144.02°
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| Turbines
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| Wind generators | Undecided, possibly Enercon E82
| | Power | 2.05 to 3MW
| | Tower height | Up to 85m
| | Rotor diameter | 82 to 95m
| | Blade length | 40 to 47.5m
| | Rotational speed | 6 to 20rpm
| | Tower base diameter | 6.5 to 10m
| | Tower top diameter | 3.1 to 3.5m
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| Project
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| Expected life | 25 years
| | Expected construction period | 21 months
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| Productivity (based on 2.05MW turbines)
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| Power | 402 GWh per year
| | Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at 534 000 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
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There seems to have been no activity on this project for about a year
(as of October 2008).
Lexton wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 19 | 1.5 | 28.5
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.31° | E 143.48°
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Lexton wind farm location
Acknowledgment
Wind
Power
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The developer is Wind Power, which is fully owned by Origin Energy.
Lexton is about 43km NW of Ballarat and 140km WNW of Melbourne.
The wind farm site consists of two distinct areas between 2km and 8km
SW of the township of Lexton, see map at the right.
Much of the data here was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria
and
Wind
Power.
There was a delay in starting construction of this wind farm connected with
changes in availability of suitable turbines.
Additional data on Lexton wind farm
| Annual generation | 87GWh
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| Capital cost | Aus$70 million
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There seems to have been no activity on this project for more than a
year (as of October 2008).
On 2007/12/06 AGL and Meridian Energy announced a "Heads of Agreement" to
explore the potential joint development of this wind farm.
Macarthur is 33km south of Hamilton and about 270km west of Melbourne.
Parsons Brinckerhoff have a
Net
page on the project.
This page states:
"In mid-2008, PB was awarded the engineering design and project services
contract to support the development of the wind farm.
Construction is expected to begin in 2009, and it is expected that energy
will begin feeding into the grid by 2011."
Some of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
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Macarthur summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 150 | 2.1 to 3? | up to 450
| 2009 | Approx. S 38.04° | E 142.00°
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The developer is
West Wind PL and, if built, the
farm will be 25-30km southeast of Ballarat and south of Ballan.
It is proposed that the wind farm will be in two sections.
The Bungeeltap Section, to the north, is proposed to contain 58 wind
turbines, and the Ballark Section, to the south, is proposed to contain 70
turbines.
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Moorabool wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Proposed | 128 | 2 to 3.3 | 256 to 422
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.71° | E 144.11°
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Further data on Moorabool wind farm
| Rotor diameter | Up to 104m
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| Total height | Up to 150m (to tip of blade)
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| Expected annual generation | 784GWh
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| Expected project cost | Aus$750m
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Proposed by Acciona Energy, this wind farm, if built, will be in two parts,
Mortlake East about 9.5km east of Mortlake, and Mortlake South about
5km south of Mortlake.
Acciona has a not very informative
Net page on the project.
Mortlake wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Proposed | 96 | 2.1? | Approx. 200
| Undecided | S 38.09° | E 142.80°
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The latitude and longitude above are those of Mortlake
The turbine capacity and total wind farm capacity above were not
stated on Acciona's Net page but were back-calculated from the number of
turbines and the expected
carbon dioxide abatement stated on the site (520 000 tonnes per year).
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Also known as Woodhouse wind farm
The developer is
NewEN Australia and they have a page
on this
wind farm.
The wind farm is to be 12km NE of Penshurst which is 26km SE of Hamilton
and 230km west of Melbourne.
Some of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
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Morton's Lane wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 13 | 2.3 | 30
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.84° | E 142.41°
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Also called Colac wind farm?
There seems to have been no action on this project since it was given
initial planning approval. (This note added 2008/10/07)
This proposed wind farm will be in the vicinity of Mount Gellibrand, 120km
west of Melbourne and south of Colac.
It was given initial planning approval by the Victorian Minister for Planning,
Rob Hulls, on August 20th, 2006.
(Available from Dept. Planning.)
The project has changed hands twice and is now (Sept. 2008) owned by Acciona.
The number of turbines to be built is under review.
A spokesman for Acciona said that there are "still several planning hurdles
to clear".
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Mount Gellibrand summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | 116 | 2 | 232
| Undecided | Approx. S 38.52° | E 143.53°
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This proposed wind farm will be south of Mount Mercer and 35km
south of Ballarat (turn off the Midland Highway at Buninyong and go
directly south) and was given planning approval in April 2007.
The proposer is
WestWind Energy who has
an office in Buninyong and a Net page on this wind farm.
A Planning Panel Report was released in December 2006.
The Ballarat
Courier, 2009/03/09,
quoted West Wind Energy general manager Tobias Geiger as
saying that the Mount Mercer wind farm had been delayed waiting for the
Rudd Government to write its promised Mandatory Renewable Energy Target
into law.
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Mount Mercer summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
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| Approved | Up to 64 | 2.05 | Up to 131
| Undecided | S 37.85° | E 143.87°
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Further data on Mount Mercer wind farm...
| Project
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| Cost | Aus$250 million
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| Expected generation | Up to 395GWh per year
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| Expected life | 25 years
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| Turbines
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| Type | Enercon E82
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| Height of towers | Up to 85m
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| Rotor diameter | 82m
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| Total height of turbines | Expected 126m
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| Spacing of towers | Around 400m
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The site is relatively flat except for two volcanic cones: Mt Mercer and
Mt Lawaluk.
The land is used primarily for grazing and cropping.
There are seven host landholders and the site area is 2 600ha.
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The developer is Wind Farm Developments.
Naroghid is between Camperdown, Terang and Cobden, and about 50km NNE of
Warrnambool and 180km WSW of Melbourne.
Some of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
There is an informative Net site apparently by
Wind Farm
Developments; it states that construction is expected to be in 2008 or
2009.
I have found no news on this project for at least a year up to October 2008.
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Naroghid wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
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|---|
| Approved | 21 | 2 | 42 | Undecided
| Approx. S 38.26° | E 143.04°
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The proposed wind farm is to be located on a series of ridgelines 3 to 5km
south of Glenthompson and about 50km east of Hamilton in western Victoria.
The area has been cleared for grazing, the hills round and grassy, and
the ridges have a variety of orientations.
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Oaklands Hill wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Approved | 32 | 2 | 64
| October 2009 | Approx. S 37.68° | E 142.55°
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The construction date and number of turbines (down from a previous
43)
shown above was published in The Age on August 1st 2009.
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Much of the information here came from
http://www.oaklandshillwindfarm.com.au/, a page written by the
proponents: Investec Bank (Australia) Ltd., and Windlab Systems PL,
but which now redirects to AGL (2009/08/12).
Some came from the journal Windpower Monthly, March 2008.
Windlab Systems has a
Net page
on the project.
As of 2009/08/12 it stated that construction is expected to commence in
mid 2009, but Bloomberg.com (on the same date) were saying that "AGL will
commit to construction ... starting in October".
It was announced in August 2009 that Suzlon had won the contract to
build (and/or supply?) the turbines for this project.
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This big wind farm
project
is being built by Pacific Hydro in several stages.
Stage 1, Yambuk and
Cape Bridgewater are up and
running.
and Cape Nelson is under construction,
and yet to be built is a wind farm at
Cape Sir William Grant.
Pacific Hydro say that this "project will produce enough clean electricity
to power about 125 000 homes... That's equal to more than 7% of
Victoria's residential electricity demand or powering a city the size of
Geelong."
|
Portland wind project completed units
| Wind farm | Yambuk | Cape Bridgewater | Cape Nelson South
| Total
|
|---|
| MW | 30 | 58 | 44 | 132
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Portland Wind Energy Project Stage 1
Yambuk wind farm
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Yambuk wind farm
|
Yambuk, commissioned in 2007, is the first of an intended four stages in
the big Portland Wind Energy Project.
For an interactive map and/or directions to Yambuk go to
ExplorOz.
Visiting Yambuk
While the Princes Highway passes within a few kilometres of the wind farm
it is not possible to get close to the turbines on any public roads.
A road from the township of Yambuk to some coastal lakes provides a fair
view of the south-eastern end of the wind farm.
The photo on the right was taken from this area.
Note that this wind farm is adjacent to Codrington wind farm, with no
obvious boundary between the two.
I believe tours are available.
Yambuk summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Commissioned | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Operating | 20 | 1.5 | 30
| May 2007 | App. S 38.33° | App. E 142.04°
|
Yambuk is located adjacent to the older Codrington wind farm and about 15km
west of Port Fairy.
The information in these tables came from a variety of sources including
Pacific Hydro.
Further Yambuk data from Pacific Hydro...
| Annual production | Greater than 90GWh expected
|
|---|
| Average annual wind speed | 8.3m/sec. (30km/hr)
|
|---|
| Wind generators | Neg Micon
|
|---|
| Project cost | Contradictory data, either Aus$50 or $76 million
|
|---|
| Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at up to 130 000 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
|
|---|
Portland Wind Energy Project Stage 2
| |
Turbines of Cape Bridgewater wind farm
|
Located on Cape Bridgewater about 20km west of Portland.
There are two sections to this farm, a northern and a southern.
The wind farm is built on coastal stable sand-dune country.
Visiting Cape Bridgewater
For anyone interested in visiting or
photography,
there are some good
vantage points on a public road quite close to the northern section of
the wind farm.
When the southern section is built access would be similarly good there.
When I visited, the weather was poor for photography (mainly overcast).
Cape Bridgewater summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Commissioned
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Operating | 29 | 2 | 58 | November 2008
| S 38.38° | E 141.39°
|
Further data from Pacific Hydro...
| Annual generation | 198GWh
|
|---|
| Capacity factor | 38.3%
|
|---|
| Greenhouse gas saving | Up to 250 000 tonnes
|
|---|
| Windmills | 2MW REpower
|
|---|
| Project cost | Aus$130 million
|
|---|
Located on Cape Nelson about 10km SW of Portland.
When I visited in late March 2008 there was a concrete batching plant
present and some bases were prepared.
Once built there should be potential for good photographs and views.
Cape Nelson wind farm will be devided into a north and a south section.
Cape Nelson South summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Completion | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Commissioning (June 2009) | 22 | 2 | 44
| June 2009 | S 38.41° | E 141.54°
|
Erection of turbines in Cape Nelson South commenced in September 2008.
Cape Nelson North summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Approved | 11 | Around 2 | Around 22 | Undecided
| Approx. S 38.39° | E 141.52°
|
Cape Nelson North is "yet to be investment sanctioned" by Pacific Hydro,
and as of 2009/06/09 the size and type of turbine had not been decided.
On 2008/09/10 Pacific Hydro announced that they are going to build only 27
turbines rather than the originally planned 58 at Cape Nelson
"because of improvements
in turbine technology".
The turbine layout map for Cape Nelson North, downloadable from the Pacific
Hydro Net site, shows eleven turbines.
Located about 5km south of Portland in mixed industrial, grazing, and
coastal heath reserve land.
Cape Sir William Grant summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Approved | 16 | ? | ?
| Undecided | S 38.40° | E 141.63°
|
Cape Sir William Grant is "yet to be investment sanctioned" by Pacific Hydro.
|
Also called Ryan's Corner wind farm
The proponent is Gamesa Energy Australia and TME Australia P.L.
The proposed wind farm is 12km NW of Port Fairy, near Yambuk and
Codrington.
The site covers an area of approximately 3 600ha and comprises
twelve land holdings.
It has been substantially cleared and is currently used for grazing.
It is generally bound by the Port Fairy-Hamilton Road, Fingerboard
Road, and Shaw River.
It is dissected by Riverside Road and Harris Road.
Most of the information for this wind farm came from a report available
via
TME Aust.'s
Projects page.
It was dated 2006.
|
Ryan Corner wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Approved | 68 | 2 | 136 | Undecided
| Approx. S 38.28° | E 142.14°
|
Additional information on Ryan Corner
| Project cost | Up to Aus$300 million
|
|---|
| Annual generation | Estimated 360GWh
|
|---|
| Annual CO2 abatement | Estimated 332 thousand tonnes
|
|---|
| Tower height | 78m
|
|---|
| Rotor diameter | 87m
|
|---|
| Blade length | 43.5m
|
|---|
| Total height | 121.5m
|
|---|
The ABC on-line news carried the following on 2008/08/25...
"The Victorian Government has confirmed a 68-turbine farm at Ryan's
Corner, near Port Fairy, and a 31-turbine farm near Hawkesdale, will
go ahead."
|
Also known as Woorndoo wind farm
The developer is
NewEN Australia and they have a page
on this
wind farm.
The wind farm is to about 20km north of Mortlake, which is 42km NE of
Warrnambool and 190km SSW of Melbourne.
It was given planning approval in June 2007; as of October 2008 that seems
to be the last information made public by NewEN Australia.
Some of the data below was from
Dept. Primary Industry, Victoria.
|
Salt Creek wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Approved | 13 | 2.3 | 30 | Undecided
| Approx. S 37.92° | E 142.79°
|
|
The developer is Roaring 40s who have been investigating the Sidonia Hills
site since 2004.
An email I had from infoaustralia@roaring40s.com stated that Roaring 40s
expected to submit a planning application in late 2009.
Direct inquiries to the above or to SidoniaHills@roaring40s.com.
The site is about 10km NE of Kyneton, which is about 60km NE of Ballarat.
Roaring 40s first newsletter states that:
"The site is particularly well suited to wind farming because,
among other things:
- The area is sparsely populated
- The land has been changed and cleared for grazing
- The landowners are supportive of the development
- Transportation and grid connection options are available."
The predominant current use of the site at present is for grazing.
Roaring 40s has a
Net page
on the project.
Their home page is
http://www.roaring40s.com.au/.
They released a newsletter on this project in August 2008; this reported that
they intend to submit their planning application in late September and
that they expect a determination by the Minister in early 2009.
|
Sidonia Hills wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Proposed | 34 | 2 | 68 | Undecided
| Approx. S 37.17° | E 144.55°
|
Further data on Sidonia Hills
| Project data
|
|---|
| Project cost | Aus$130-150 million
|
|---|
| Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at 250 000 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
|
|---|
|
The Sisters wind farm has been proposed by Wind Farm Developments and, if
built, will be about 10km west of Terang.
Wind Farm Developments have a not very informative
Net page on the project.
Moyne Shire Council declined planning permission and Wind Farm Developments
has appealed the decision to the Victorian Civil and Administrative
Tribunal (VCAT) (sources close to the project, 2009/08/20).
The Sisters wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Proposed? | 9 to 12 | ? | Less than 30MW | Undecided
| Approx. S 38.24° | E 142.80°
|
|
| |
From Wind Power's July 2008 newsletter
|
Wind Power (fully owned by Origin Energy) have proposed this farm between
Beaufort and Skipton, and about 45km west of Ballarat.
They have a
Net
page on it.
Stockyard Hill wind farm summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW | Construction date
| Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Proposed | 282 | 2 | 564 | Undecided
| Approx. S 37.56° | E 143.39°
|
ABC online news, Oct. 14 2008, reported that the Planning Minister had
decided that an environmental impact statement would not be required for
this project.
Wind Power's Ross Richards said "the Government has recognised that the
company has already done the studies normally required under an EES".
Further information on Stockyard Hill wind farm
| Annual generation | 1482GWh expected
|
|---|
| Greenhouse CO2 saving | 1.3 million tonnes per year
|
|---|
The annual generation figure is based on a capacity factor of 30%.
Wind Power say that the power from the farm will be sufficient to power
six times as many homes as are in Ballarat.
They say that the community fund will receive over $140 000 over 25
years, that local landowners will be paid over $2m/yr and rates paid to
the Pyrenees Shire will be over $540 000/yr.
|
Toora summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Commissioned | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Operating | 12 | 1.75 | 21 | 2002
| S 38.65° | E 146.34°
|
|
|
Looking from Toora toward Wilsons Promontory at dawn
|
Toora is north of Wilsons Promontory and 150km SE of Melbourne.
The wind farm is on a ridge overlooking the town.
For an interactive map and/or directions to Toora go to
ExplorOz.
Toora wind farm was originally owned by Stanwell Corporation, but was
acquired by
Transfield Services
Infrastructure Fund, who bought all Stanwell's wind farms in December 2007.
ALSTOM was contracted to design, supply, install and commission the
22/66kV substation, together with associated civil works.
Vestas Wind Systems - a Danish company, and one of the world's largest
turbine manufacturers - constructed the wind farm.
I visited Toora in late April 2008, staying in the caravan park at the foot
of the hill on which the wind farm is built.
My impression when I was close to the turbines was that they might have
been a little noisier than most others I have visited, but even so,
they were barely audible from the caravan park, and then only once in a
while.
Visiting Toora wind farm
There are good viewing and photography points on a road that passes right
by the wind farm.
From some of these views of the coastal plain, the Strzelecki Ranges, and
Wilsons Promontory can be combined with views of the turbines.
Accommodation is available in a caravan park at Toora.
Further data from
Transfield, the owner of this wind farm...
| Project data
|
|---|
| Project cost | Aus$38 million
|
|---|
| Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at 48 000 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
|
|---|
|
|
|
Toora wind farm; Strzelecki ranges in background
|
| Turbine data
|
|---|
| Rotation rate | 21.3 revolutions per minute
|
|---|
| Productive wind speeds | From 4 to 25m/sec (14km/h)
|
|---|
| Cut-in wind speed | 4m/sec (14km/h)
|
| Nominal wind speed | 16m/sec (58km/h)
|
| Stop wind speed | 25m/sec (90km/h)
|
| Wind generators | Vestas
|
|---|
| Tower height | 67m
|
|---|
| Tower construction | Tapered steel tube in 3 sections
|
| Tower weight | 117t
|
| Tower footings | App. 13 metres square reinforced
concrete app. 1.75m deep; weight 600t
|
| Rotor diameter | 66m
|
|---|
| Blade length | 33m
|
| Blades | Variable pitch; made of carbon fibre
reinforced plastic
|
| Weight of rotor and blades | 23 tonnes
|
|
|
| Location of Waubra wind farm
From the Acciona Net site
|
|
This wind farm is near the small town of Waubra about 30km NW
of Ballarat on the Sunraysia Highway.
Part is on each side of the highway and many of the turbines can be seen
from the Western Highway west of Ballarat.
For an interactive map and/or directions to Waubra go to
ExplorOz.
Waubra wind farm is owned by Acciona Wind Power, a sister company of
Acciona Energy,
and is the biggest wind farm AWP has yet built anywhere in the world.
Acciona Energy has an informative
Net page
on Waubra wind farm, including a location map
and there is an article in
Wikipedia.
It seems that ANZ Infrastructure Services and Origin Energy may also be
part owners.
The Ballarat Courier noted on 2009/02/25 that Waubra wind farm is
to be fully operational by the end of June.
My information is that Waubra is generating but that
some turbines are still in final stages of commissioning
(as of 2009/06/04).
Several sources have published that Waubra is the biggest wind farm in
Australia.
As a South Australian I have to point out that our
Lake Bonney wind farm
(Stages 1 and 2 combined) has a capacity of 239.5MW, considerably bigger
than the 192MW of Waubra.
Waubra summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Completion date | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Operating | 128 | 1.5 | 192
| Oct. 2009 | S 37.39° | E 143.63°
|
Completion was sometime from June to October, it seems that there was a
'launch' of the wind farm on 2009/10/06.
|
|
| |
Construction at Waubra on a grey Ballarat morning
|
|
Visiting Waubra wind farm
The town of Waubra is 30km NW of Ballarat on the Sunraysia Highway (highway
121).
The wind farm can be seen from both the Sunraysia Highway and the Western
Highway, but there are several minor roads near Waubra
that can be used to get in among the turbines.
Acciona Energy is planning a wind farm viewing area on the Sunraysia
Highway in Waubra.
This will not be near any of the turbines and much more interesting
views will be available for those who get off the highway onto the side
roads.
Further data on the Waubra wind farm...
| Civil works completed | September 2007
|
|---|
| First turbine parts to arrive on site | Nov./Dec. 2007
|
|---|
| Tower erection started | 17th Dec. 2007
|
|---|
| Nacelle erection started | 9th Jan. 2008
|
|---|
| Turbine model | Acciona Windpower 1.5MW
|
|---|
| Towers manufactured by | Keppel Prince Engineering (Portland) and
Haywards Engineering (Tasmania)
|
|---|
| Nacelles and hubs manufactured by | Acciona Windpower (Pamplona,
Spain)
|
|---|
| Blades manufactured by | Tecsis (Brazil)
|
|---|
| Project cost | Aus$326 million
|
|---|
| Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at 635 000 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
|
|---|
|
The turbines are in three configurations, the maximum height to the
blade tip being: 109.8m, 117.1m, and 119.8m.
Air navigation lights are installed on 48 of the 128 wind turbine
towers.
|
|
Proposed by Acciona, the builders of
Waubra wind farm, this farm is to be about
9km NE of Waubra, near Evansford (and Clunes).
It will be about 30km NNW of Ballarat.
Acciona Energy's managing director Brett Thomas was reported in the
Ballarat Courier on 2009/02/27 as saying that they are in the early stages
of the proposal.
Waubra North summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Proposed | ? | ? | ?
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.31° | E 143.74°
|
|
|
This wind farm is proposed by
International Power Australia who
expect construction to start in 2010 and operation in 2011.
More information is available at Future Energy's site,
Winchelsea
It is proposed that this wind farm will be on Mt Pollock and 10km from
Winchelsea (direction not specified), which is near Geelong.
Winchelsea is at Latitude S 38.24°, Longitude E 144.00°.
The towers are expected to be 80m high, the blades 35m to 29m in
length and the farm is expected to generate around 85GWh of electricity
each year.
Much of this information came from International Power's Net site.
|
Winchelsea summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Approved | 14 | 2 | 28
| Undecided | Approx. S ?° | E ?°
|
|
|
Turbines of Wonthaggi wind farm
|
Wonthaggi wind farm is about 100km SE of Melbourne, 75km NW of Wilsons
Promontory and 3km west of Wonthaggi town center in Gippsland, Victoria.
It is owned by Origin Energy, through Wind Power, who have a Net
page
on the wind farm.
For an interactive map and/or directions to Wonthaggi go to
ExplorOz.
Wonthaggi summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Annual production | Commissioned | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Operating | 6 | 2 | 12 | 34GWh expected | December 2005
| S 38.60° | E 145.55°
|
|
An example wind power generation graph, this one for August 2007,
from Wonthaggi, Victoria.
Acknowledgement
Wind Power
|
Visiting Wonthaggi wind farm
The foot of one turbine can be reached from Wonthaggi via Campbell and
Baxter Roads, but it is necessary to go through a couple of gates.
A fair view can also be obtained from a hill of mine waste via West Area
Road; about Lat. S 38.59°, Long. E 145.55°.
|
More information on Wonthaggi
| Project cost | Aus$20.4 million
|
|---|
| Greenhouse gas saving | Estimated at 47 830 tonnes
CO2 p.a.
|
|---|
| Average wind speed at site | 8.2m/sec.
|
|---|
| Actual generation in 2006 | 28.4GWh
|
|---|
| Capacity factor for 2006 | 27%
|
|---|
|
Yaloak is near Ballan in western Victoria.
Ballan is 33km east of Ballarat and 68km west of Melbourne.
This project was originally for "70 wind turbines and was refused by Minister
Hulls in July 2005 due to the potential impact of the development on the
Wedge-tailed Eagle population and, to a lesser extent, visual amenity in the
Parwan Valley."
"Pacific Hydro is proposing to re-submit a Planning Application for the
development of 14 wind turbines on the site."
The above was quoted from
(http://www.pacifichydro.cl/en-us/our-projects/yaloak-wind-farm.aspx)
Pacific Hydro's Net page on the project (no longer available –
2009/09/29).
|
Yaloak summary data
| Status | # Turbines | MW each | Total MW
| Construction date | Lat. | Long.
|
|---|
| Proposed | 14 | 2.1? | Approx. 30
| Undecided | Approx. S 37.61°
| E 144.23°
|
In addition to the wind farms detailed above many others have been proposed
(table below).
If and when any of these proposed wind farms look likely to be built,
and as I get more information, I will write them up in more detail.
If any readers have information concerning these I would appreciate
a note, my email address is at the top of this page.
Until a wind farm gets at least to the point where an application for
approval has been submitted to the relevant authority it may be little
more than wishfull thinking and is not worth covering in more detail than
that below.
|