State rolls out red carpet for four new wind projects in race to replace ageing coal generators

Four new wind projects with a combined clean energy generation capacity of more than 1.3 gigawatts have been put on the development fast-track for Western Australia, after being declared priority projects by the state Labor government.

The wind farms join a green iron plant as the first five projects to be given priority status under WA’s recently legislated State Development Act (SDA), a new framework that empowers government and a statutory Coordinator General to speed up the approvals process for strategically significant projects.

The green iron plant, called NeoSmelt, is a collaboration led by BlueScope and including BHP, Rio Tinto, Woodside Energy and Mitsui Iron Ore Development, that plans to use renewable and “lower-carbon energy” to produce molten iron Pilbara iron ore.

WA premier Roger Cook also on Thursday morning declared the state’s first ever State Development Area (SDA) as the Western Trade Coast, an existing industrial precinct located between Munster and Rockingham, where NeoSmelt is located.

The four wind farms selected for fast-track include three that last month locked in long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with state government-owned utilities, including two with gentailer Synergy and one with the WA Water Corporation.

The Synergy-contracted projects include Zephyr Energy’s 470 megawatt (MW) Parron Maam Marang wind farm, proposed for 10km northwest of Badgingarra, and the Kondinin Wind Farm, a 130 MW facility being developed by Shell Energy and Foresight Group in the state’s Wheatbelt Region.

Also on the fast-track is the Marri Wind Farm, an up to 550MW project being developed south of Dandaragan by Alinta Energy – and contracted to supply 330 MW to the Water Corporation.

The fourth wind farm to be given priority status is Neoen Australia’s Narrogin Wind Farm, a 180MW project proposed for south of Perth, near the towns of Narrogin and Williams.

As Renew Economy has reported, 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 Parron Maam project is also well advanced in its plans to install up to 79 Vestas turbines next to the Western Power Northern Terminal on the state’s main grid, having secured all local, state and federal government approvals to go ahead.

The Kondinin wind farm, which plans to install up to 46 wind turbines in two stages in the West Australian wheatbelt, also has received all the necessary local, state and federal approvals, its website says. First stage construction is slated to begin this year.

Renew Economy understands the main benefit for these projects being given priority status will likely come from the coordination side of the equation, including to streamline the grid-connection processes, which will involve the Clean Energy Link transmission project that Western Power is developing.

The fact that all four wind farms have already secured their environmental and development approvals is interesting, too, in light of some of the criticisms of the SDA.

These have centred around concerns that it will bypass environmental safeguards and concentrate too much power with the state premier and development minister – both positions currently held by Roger Cook.

Law firm Gilbert + Tobin has described the SDA here as a “net positive for WA’s energy transition” and says it emphasises maintaining robust environmental and heritage safeguards, “expressly protecting the independence of existing regulators.”

How well these safeguards hold up remains to be seen, but there can be little argument that Western Australia needs to get cracking to build enough new renewable energy capacity to replace fossil fuels and to decarbonise its industrial centres.

“Last year, we passed our State Development Act, and now we are putting our new powers to work in the pursuit of new jobs and opportunities for Western Australians,” Cook said on Thursday morning.

“In designating the first five Priority Projects and State Development Area under these new powers, we are delivering on our vision of becoming a renewable energy powerhouse [and] making more things here.”

“This is a crucial step towards getting out of coal by 2030 and developing WA as a global renewable energy powerhouse,” state energy minister Amber Jade Sanderson said on Thursday.

“By fast tracking these projects, we’re creating a stronger future for WA, diversifying the economy and creating great local jobs.”

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