The first four of 30 new turbines have been erected at the Warradarge wind farm in Western Australia, a year after the $400 million expansion was first revealed.
An extra 30 turbines will take the wind arm from 180 megawatts (MW) to a total capacity of 283 MW from 71 machines, making it the biggest in the state.
All 30 Vestas turbines are expected to be erected by August, and all are the same size as those in stage one with a hub height of 84 metres and rotor diameter of 136m.
The project is owned by Bright Energy Investments, a joint venture owned by Potentia Energy and state-owned Synergy.
“We’re pleased to see construction progressing and look forward to continuing to work with our valued partners to support the state’s renewable energy future,” Potentia Energy CEO Werther Esposito said on LinkedIn.
Warradarge stage 2 expansion. Image: Potentia Energy
The expansion was part-funded to the tune of $30 million by the state government, and state energy minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said on Thursday it reflects the work done by the government to strengthen the grid and connect renewable energy at scale.Â
“The energy transition is complex, but Western Australia has the conditions and a responsible, credible plan to become a renewable energy powerhouse and secure a better future for generations to come,” she said on LinkedIn.
The extra capacity will make Warradarge the largest operating wind farm in Western Australia, pipping Windlab’s 222 MW Collgar and Alinta’s 214 MW Yandin wind farms.
There are however 10 other projects in the Western Australia planning process now which are bigger, from the 489 MW Parron wind project to the south of Warradarge which has its planning approval, to the gigawatt-scale Western Green Energy Hub and the Australian Renewable Energy Hub which are still under assessment.
