Progress as 800MW Clarke Creek wind farm nears construction in Queensland

Construction looks set to begin on Lacour Energy’s 800MW Clarke Creek wind farm in central Queensland anytime soon, after the first community consultative committee meeting for the project was held last week.

Goldwind Australia, which is delivering the massive $1 billion project for Lacour, said the inaugural meeting marked the first of what would now be quarterly community consultations, focusing on the project’s progress and the development and delivery of the associated community fund.

Goldwind said the project team delivered an update on the wind farm’s construction program, which had been due to commence in 2019. The project is expected to create 350 jobs once it is in full swing.

Goldwind community engagement manager Clare Powell said the meetings would keep the community informed about the project, seek local views and respond to matters raised by the community.

“The committee will have an advisory and consultative role within the project’s delivery, particularly for the development and delivery of the community fund for the project. The $200,000 annual community fund will commence once the project starts construction,” Powell said.

The 195 turbine project won state approval in June 2018, and then federal approval later that year. It also has approval for the addition of 400MW of large-scale solar and a grid-scale battery system, which would boost costs to $1.5 billion.

Director of Lacour Energy, Mark Rayner, said the plan was for the Clarke Creek Integrated Wind, Solar and Battery Power Station to be located at one of the strongest locations of the Queensland power system – with no grid extension required.

“Located on the backbone of the Powerlink 275 kV transmission network approximately 150km northwest of Rockhampton, the Clarke Creek Integrated Wind, Solar and Battery Project will have a construction cost totalling over $1.5 billion,” Goldwind said on Monday.