Latrobe Valley wind farm seeks final permit tweaks as construction date nears

The developers of a 200MW wind farm overlooking the former Hazelwood coal plant in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley have applied to make a number of final tweaks to the project’s planning permits before getting to work on construction in 2024.

Osmi Australia said on Monday that it had submitted an application to make “minor amendments” to the wording of the permit conditions for the Delburn wind farm, “to improve understanding and interpretation” and ensure the enforceability of the permit conditions.

These included clarifying the wind turbine setback distances from the Strzelecki Highway, and adjustments to the bushfire risk and mitigation conditions to remove any uncertainty in what these meant and how they should be applied.

The 33-turbine Delburn wind farm – one of Australia’s first to be built within an established plantation – has had a somewhat bumpy road to development, including a Supreme Court challenge to the project’s March 2022 approval that was defeated in March of this year.

The group behind the legal challenge, the Strzelecki Community Alliance (SCA), argued the project was in a bushfire prone area and too close to local homes.

The wind farm, which has the backing of London-based investor Cubico, last year had to put battery storage plans on hold over fire safety concerns.

Further complicating matters has been that the site for the project, within the Strzelecki Ranges, spans across three separate council areas, requiring submission and approval of four separate permits, including two for the City of Latrobe.

Osmi’s execultive director of operations and compliance, Elizabeth Radcliffe, said on Monday the proposed changes to the permit were about being “really clear” about what is required of the developers in the design and management of the wind farm.

“The way previous conditions were worded, it was a little bit ambiguous and … open to a number of different possible interpretations,” Radcliffe told RenewEconomy.

“We’re seeking to make sure that it’s really clear.”

Radcliffe says the plan is still to target financial close for the wind farm at the end of this year and start on construction early works in the first quarter of next year. And she says there’s a lot of interest in the community in the job and other economic opportunities construction will bring.

“For both construction and operation of the ultimate project, we’re working closely with the Latrobe Valley Authority [and the councils] …to identify what are all the various subcontractors that exist or potential subcontractors that exist.

“We’re doing a big capability mapping exercise with them, breaking the construction process down into various different work stages, and then working with industry and [local government]… to identify what what are all the businesses out there that can be involved.

“So, you know, we’re very aware that there’s lots of transferable skills in the community in the Latrobe Valley. And, of course, because there’s such a large component particularly of civil works in the construction of a wind farm, we’re really confident there will be lots of opportunities for local people to get involved.”