Construction starts on new wind farm as leading developer switches to new Chinese-made turbines

One of Australia’s leading wind farm developers has delivered on its threat to switch to a Chinese turbine maker after announcing financial close, key contractors and a construction start for the first wind project in Australia to get the green light in fiscal 2026/27.

Shanghai-based Envision Energy is to supply the 23 turbines for Neoen Australia’s 179 megawatt (MW) Narrogin wind farm in Western Australia’s wheatbelt, a major coup for the Chinese developer, a new player in the Australian market.

Envision has already landed a major contract with Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue for the 132 MW Nullagine wind project in the Pilbara, and sent its first turbines en route to Australia last week, and seems well placed to deliver on the rest of that company’s near gigawatt scale wind plans.

Both projects are using Envision Energy’s EN-182, 7.8 MW wind turbine generators – the most powerful ever to built in Australia.

The potential shift to Envision was flagged two years ago by Neoen when it expressed frustration with the quality and pricing of existing suppliers, and the move suggests a major shakeup of the local industry which has been creaking under the pressures of rising costs, planning delays and the lack of contracts.

“We do see today … some equivalence between the quality of Chinese turbines and Western turbines and we see, of course, more competitive prices coming from those potential suppliers,” Neoen CEO Xavier Barbaro said at the time.

See: “Not always a great quality:” Leading wind developer may switch from western to Chinese turbines

“We will certainly, in the near future, start using Chinese turbines. It will first happen in Australia, but I’m sure that it could happen at some point in Europe, and then we’ll see.”

Barbaro did not mention any Western suppliers by name at the time, but the company has sourced turbines from most of the leading makers, including Vestas at its Kaban wind farm, Siemens Gamesa at Hornsdale and Bulgana, and GE Renewables at the recently completed Goyder South wind project.

Neoen says construction has started on the Narrogin project, with contracts going to Cimic’s UGL and CPB Contractors. The project is located on freehold land about 10 km west of Narrogin, and is due to start generating in 2028.

The start of a new wind project is rare enough news in Australia, and this is the first for the new financial year. It follows earlier construction starts in the 2026 calendar year at Waddi (108 MW) in Western Australia, Palmer (258 MW) and Carmody’s Hill (256 MW) in South Australia and Delburn (205 MW) in Victoria.

The Narrogin project has won an underwriting agreement with the federal government’s Capacity Investment Scheme and has the backing of state-government owned Synergy for an offtake agreement.

It is also one of four wind projects fast-tracked by the state government to ensure it has enough new capacity to replace the last coal fired generators that are due to close by the end of the decade.

The Narrogin wind farm, which will potentially include a 100 MW, 200 MWh battery component in the future, has already secured both state and federal environmental approvals and last September got the all clear from the state, following a development assessment panel (DAP) hearing.

The WA government says Synergy has also entered into agreements with Zephyr Energy for Parron Maam Marang Farm, Kondinin Energy for Kondinin Wind Farm, and Bright Energy Investments for the Warradarge Wind Farm Stage 2.

“I am thrilled work is about to start on Neoen’s Narrogin Wind Farm after Synergy agreed to buy its renewable energy,” state energy minister Amber Jade-Sanderson said in a statement.

“Power Purchase Agreements give developers the certainty they need, unlocking investment in renewable energy projects that will benefit the entire State.

“Projects like this are fast tracking the energy transition, creating great local jobs, and realising the Cook Labor Government’s vision for WA to become a renewable energy powerhouse.”

It is Neoen’s first wind farm in Western Australia, and follows investments in three large scale battery projects, including the two stages that comprise the 560 MW, 2240 MWh Collie battery that was, for a time, the biggest in the country, and the newly commenced Muchea battery.

The company says eoen has entered into an innovative agreement with the Shire of Narrogin to prioritise investment in the local housing and services sector and will work together with the Gnaala Karla Booja Aboriginal Corporation to deliver meaningful First Nations outcomes.

It says that once the wind farm is operational, it will deliver a neighbour benefit scheme and an annual community benefit-sharing program to support legacy initiatives in WA’s Wheatbelt region.

“I would like to congratulate the team on this impressive achievement. Neoen has experienced rapid growth in Western Australia in recent years with storage and we’re excited to be adding wind generation to the mix,” Barbaro said in a statement on Wednesday.

“This milestone also means Neoen has now developed and delivered more than 10 GW of capacity globally. We intend to further accelerate our growth and our contribution to the energy transition with the aim of doubling our impact to 20 GW by 2030.”

Josh Wilson, the WA-baseAssistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy, said the start of construction at Narrogin is a major step forward for the WA clean energy transition.

“Awarded a Capacity Scheme Investment Agreement by the Australian Government, this project will help deliver cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable energy while creating jobs and investment in the Wheatbelt and supporting the State’s transition from coal-fired power,” he said in a statement.

“Narrogin Wind Farm is one of the projects that will help power more Western Australian homes and strengthen energy security, while reducing emissions and putting downward pressure on power prices.”

Note: This article has been changed since first publication to correct the supplier to the Hornsdale wind farm.

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