Spark Renewables

Sometimes a jar of honey is all it takes to start a conversation.

Our Bomen Solar Farm honey has become something of a signature giveaway at Spark Renewables’ community events. At the Wentworth Show last month, it helped bring people to our stall — but the conversations soon moved to the proposed 400 MW Mallee Wind Farm and what it could mean for the region.

Across two days, we spoke with around 60 people: local residents, workers, businesses, government and industry representatives, and people simply curious about how a wind farm works.

There were questions about when construction could start, why turbines sometimes stop turning, what happens at the end of a wind farm’s operating life and what opportunities might emerge for local workers and businesses.

What particularly encouraged us was hearing from regional businesses already thinking ahead. Some came to us with existing capability in construction materials, recycled materials and other services that could potentially support a major infrastructure project.

That is useful information to hear now, not when construction is already under way.

Mallee Wind Farm is still in development. Alongside the technical work such as four years of measured wind data that has helped inform the project layout and further heritage studies now under way; the team is continuing to progress day-to-day development work, including responding to comments from Transport for NSW, advancing grid connection, planning for oversize and over-mass transport movements, and preparing for referral to the Independent Planning Commission.

Conversations like those at the Wentworth Show complement this work by helping us better understand the local skills, business capability and community knowledge that could contribute to the project as it progresses.

We also heard concerns and questions about visual impacts, agricultural land, decommissioning and end-of-life turbine components. Those conversations are just as important. They tell us where clearer information is needed and what people want us to keep talking about as the project develops.

Thank you to everyone who stopped for some honey, a question or a longer conversation.

We left Wentworth with fewer jars — and a better understanding of the community around the Mallee Wind Farm.

Spark Renewables is proud to sponsor the annual Wentworth Show, held on the last weekend of August each year at the Wentworth Showgrounds. The Show is a much-loved community event that brings together local businesses, producers, exhibitors and competitors from across the region, with plenty of opportunities to celebrate locally grown produce, skills and achievements. You can view the full program of events taking place across Saturday and Sunday here.

For the Spark Renewables development team, the Wentworth Show is also an important opportunity to spend time in the community and have conversations about the proposed Mallee Wind Farm.

“My family has a farm in Victoria, so country shows are very familiar to me. The Wentworth Show is one of my favourite events to attend each year as part of the development team. It gives us the opportunity to enjoy a great local event while speaking directly with community members about the proposed Mallee Wind Farm.”
Claudia Nance, Development Officer

Visitors are welcome to stop by the Spark Renewables stall to meet the team, view project materials and ask questions about the proposed Mallee Wind Farm.

Ahead of the Show, we are also inviting community members to submit any questions, comments or topics they would like to discuss with our team. You can share yours in advance via this form:

See you there!

Spark Renewables is a proud sponsor of the Chances for Children scholarships, including the “Keeping Kids at Secondary School” program, which supports students in their final years of secondary school to complete their education, and the “Tertiary Scholarship” program, which assists young people aged 24 and under to pursue further study or apprenticeships after leaving school. 

To learn more about application rounds, eligibility and how to apply, contact the Chances for Children team on (03) 5023 5966 or at chances4children@malleefamilycare.com.au.

For the fourth year, Spark Renewables participated in the 2026 Mildura Field Days, where our team had the opportunity to speak with local residents, students, teachers, businesses, industry representatives and community organisations about the proposed 400 MW Mallee Wind Farm, located approximately 16 km north-east of Buronga in New South Wales and 17 km north-east of Mildura, Victoria. 

The Mildura Field Days provided a valuable opportunity to host a pop-up stall, share information about the project, hear directly from the community, and better understand local priorities, questions and opportunities. 

Over the two days, more than 70 locals from Mildura and the broader Mallee region visited our stall.  

We asked about their sentiment towards the Mallee Wind Farm and found that views were overwhelmingly positive toward the Mallee Wind Farm project – with 65% of respondents saying they were either “supportive”, “positive”, “collaborative”, “interested” or “curious”. Another 21% of respondents said they were “neutral” and the remainder 14% expressed “mixed”, “skeptical” or “negative” views. 

Local interest and community conversations 

Many community members stopped by the Spark Renewables stand to view project maps, collect newsletters, and learn more about the proposed Mallee Wind Farm. Several residents expressed support for renewable energy investment in the region and were interested in the potential economic and community benefits associated with the project.  

There was also strong interest in biodiversity and environmental considerations. Attendees asked thoughtful questions about bird flight paths, the project’s proximity to Mallee Cliffs National Park, turbine visibility and decommissioning.  

Several attendees working in energy and infrastructure also raised practical questions about transport logistics, road access, transmission infrastructure and powerline considerations. 

These topics were mostly raised as part of the formal consultation process of the development application via the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) for the Mallee Wind Farm. In response, further investigations including biodiversity, water resource, and aviation assessments; transport and landscape studies; and heritage documentation were completed as part of the Submissions Report and Amendment Report for the Mallee Wind Farm which were lodged with DPHI in April 2026.  

Ongoing consultation with the local community and government agencies will inform management strategies for issues raised, including:  

• Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Management Plan 
• Biodiversity Management Plan
• Bird and Bat Adaptive Management Plan  
• Bush Fire and Emergency Management Operations Plan 
• Community plans (benefit-sharing, engagement, accommodation, employment, industry and Aboriginal participation)
• Construction management plans (noise and vibration, soil and water, traffic and transport)
• Decommissioning and Rehabilitation Plan
• Erosion and Sediment Control Plan
• Operational Environmental Management Plan 

For a more detailed update on the Mallee Wind Farm development application progress, you can read the latest community newsletter or sign up to project news. 

Opportunities for local businesses and contractors 

Many businesses, including transport, crane, earthmoving, concrete, and civil construction, were interested in participating in renewable energy projects more broadly, asking about future supplier, tendering and partnership opportunities. Local contractors expressed interest in potential balance-of-plant works, civil packages, concrete supply and transport services.  

> Anyone interested in registering their interest in supplier and service provider opportunities can sign up here.  

Education, training and research connections 

The Mildura Field Days also created opportunities to connect with educators and researchers interested in future classroom engagement opportunities and potential collaboration with Spark Renewables. 

Students were interested in learning technical facts about wind turbines and wind energy and asked practical questions.  

“Our team regularly presents to students studying electrical trades at TAFE locations to support their learning and industry awareness, and we are excited to have been invited to visit the Sunraysia Institute of TAFE in Mildura later this year.”

Download the PDF newsletter here: Mallee Wind Farm – Community Newsletter #8 – April 2026

Overview

The Mallee Wind Farm is a proposed renewable energy project located in the Wentworth Shire Local Government Area, approximately 16 km north-east of Buronga.

Developed by Spark Renewables, the project would have a generation capacity of 400 MW, co-located with a 100 MW battery energy storage system (BESS). The site is located on flat, cleared land with a strong wind resource and is well positioned to generate, store, and dispatch electricity to the National Electricity Market.

• Equivalent to supplying electricity to over 200,000 households
• Up to 225 jobs during peak construction and around 30 ongoing jobs during operations
• $420,000 annually in direct payments to community and council funds (based on 400 MW capacity)

Planning Update

The Mallee Wind Farm is a State Significant Development under NSW planning legislation and requires a rigorous planning and assessment process that ensures environmental, social, and economic impacts are properly considered. Following the lodgement of a formal ‘Response to Submissions’ and an ‘Amendment Report’ for Mallee Wind Farm in April 2026, the project is now under assessment by the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI). We will continue to provide updates as the project progresses.

Find the project Response to Submissions and Amendment Report on the NSW Planning Portal for Major Projects by visiting this page.

Community consultation

Consultation for the Mallee Wind Farm project commenced in August 2022 with the announcement of the project and our first information sessions. We engaged closely with key stakeholders to better understand matters important to the local community.

The project’s Environmental Impact Statement was on public exhibition between 13 November and 10 December 2024, receiving 140 submissions. There were 30 submissions from stakeholders within 100 kilometres from the project. Further information was requested about the project impacts and management plans, with no objections raised by the local council or government agencies.

Interest in Project Impacts

There were 61 public submissions that identified specific environmental, social and economic impacts of the project. Most of these related to various social impacts (44%); followed by questions about management of traffic, waste and water use (24%); protection of biodiversity (23%); and planning for aviation and bushfire safety (9%).

Upcoming Events

Spark Renewables is committed to open and ongoing engagement with the community throughout the development of the Mallee Wind Farm. We value the opportunity to meet with local residents and community groups to share project information, answer questions, and hear community feedback to understand the ongoing concerns and learn about benefit sharing opportunities. Our project team will continue to attend local community events where we host an information stall and provide updates on the project.

You can visit Spark Renewables’ information stall at:
– Mildura Field Days on 15-16 May 2026
– Wentworth Show on 29-30 August 2026

Community Benefit Sharing

Consistent with the NSW Benefit Sharing Guideline, the project would contribute $1,050 per MW each year during construction and operations. Spark Renewables is currently engaging with the Wentworth Shire Council, community and First Nations organisations to co-design a benefit-sharing program to create lasting social value for the community.