Image supplied by Squadron Energy
All 100 turbines that make up the first stage of the massive Clarke Creek wind farm in Queensland are constructed and now feeding green electricity into the grid, after final commissioning of the 450 megawatt project was completed this week.
Squadron Energy, owned by iron ore magnate and green energy champion Andrew Forrest, announced the official opening of the project on Friday afternoon, marking a major milestone for the company and the biggest wind farm to open in Australia this year.
Clarke Creek is located 150 km north-west of Rockhampton and 150 km south of Mackay on the land of the Barada Kabalbara Yetimarala (BKY) peoples.
The project has a 15-year contract with Queensland state-owned generator Stanwell to buy more than 75 per cent of the energy generated from its first stage, as it moves away from coal power, albeit more slowly under the state’s new energy roadmap.
Squadron says the wind farm is also pioneering new community benefits, with all households and businesses within 20km of it eligible for the Clarke Creek Wind Farm Bill Bonus – a rebate of $1,000 on annual electricity bills.
“Renewable energy is now the cheapest form of power on Earth – and the more we make of it, firmed with batteries, the cheaper it becomes. That’s why I’ll keep investing and doubling down on green energy,” said Forrest in a statement marking the wind farm’s launch.
“Clarke Creek will power the equivalent of 330,000 homes with reliable, affordable, green electricity made right here in regional Queensland.
“Projects like this show that renewables aren’t just good for our planet – they’re good economics. They lower power bills, strengthen our energy system, and keep jobs and investment in regional communities.
“We’re proud to pioneer the Clarke Creek Bill Bonus,” Forrest added. “It’s a new approach that ensures local communities share directly in the benefits of green energy investment.”
Stanwell CEO Michael O’Rourke said the power purchase deal with Clarke Creek would ensure the company could continue to supply affordable, reliable and sustainable energy to its customers.
“Over the next 15 years, the energy generated from these 100 turbines at Clarke Creek Wind Farm will help our customers who want to power their business with renewable energy and achieve their sustainability goals,” he said.
Squadron says stage two of Clarke Creek, which will add another 88 turbines, is in the advanced planning stage. Together with stage one, it will add up to one of the biggest wind farms in Australia, with a capacity of more than 1GW.
That wind project may be dwarfed however by Forrest’s listed company Fortescue’s new plans to build a 2 gigawatt wind project to help power its iron ore mines in the Pilbara and support its goal of reaching “real zero” for those operations by 2030.
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