Neoen wants to build first wind project in state where it is building country’s biggest battery

French renewable energy developer Neoen is seeking state government approval for what would be its first wind project in Western Australia, where it is half way through building what will be the country’s biggest battery project.

Neoen is seeking approval for the 200 megawatt Narrogin wind farm though the state Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It wants to build a 25 turbine project, which will also include a 100 MW, 200 MWh battery component, on farmland between Narrogin and Williams, south-east of Perth.

The proposal is to connect into the South West Interconnected System (SWIS) via an existing 220 kV overhead transmission line near the site’s southern boundary.

Neoen started the EPA approval process in September, and it’s this application that the public can weigh in on until November 24.

Neoen is currently building the 560 MW, 2240 MWh Collie battery, and has already completed the first stage. It was approved with little fanfare, but the Narrogin wind farm has already created some consternation within the local community. 

The Narrogin shire council created a planning policy to ensure that any renewables projects were conducted in line with community wishes.

But one councillor told the ABC in August the project doesn’t align with their new standard and that Neoen had gone over their heads to “bypass” the local policy.

In its environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project, Neoen noted that the policy “would make most wind projects unviable while being very conservative and not evidence based.”

The developer says it has been engaging with local stakeholders since 2022.

Wheatbelt wind

The design taken to the EPA has changed since the Narrogin wind farm was originally conceived. 

The first draft foresaw more than 40 turbines across a parcel of land that was a third larger than currently being proposed. The reduction was to avoid black cockatoo habitat. 

Infrastructure was moved to avoid higher quality agricultural land or conservation land.

Several of the changes directly address issues raised in the Narrogin planning policy, including shifting and removing turbines to account for potential noise issues, possible impacts on local aviation, and to mitigate visual effects.  

The community benefits fund will start at $225,000 a year, and Neoen has promised to “go above and beyond” what the state requires when it comes to benefits sharing schemes. 

Western Australia’s central and southern agricultural areas have become hot tickets for renewable energy developers as the state races against the coal clock. 

The state’s last government-owned coal fired power station units near Collie are expected to close by 2030.

Major projects pencilled in to fill the southern landscape include Spanish giant Acciona Energia’s 3 GW, $6 billion wind project near Collie, another Neoen project in the 2.24 GWh Collie battery, and Green Wind Renewables’ 1.75 GW spread across three projects.

*This article has been updated to include the new community fund figure of $225,000 per year.