Spark Renewables announces proposed Mallee Wind Farm and launches community consultation
11 August 2022
Leading renewable energy developer and operator, Spark Renewables, has announced plans to develop the Mallee Wind Farm in the South-West Renewable Energy Zone of New South Wales.
The proposed wind farm would be located approximately 16 kilometres to the north-east of Buronga in Wentworth Shire and would have a generation capacity of up to 1 gigawatt (GW), providing enough renewable electricity to power 450,000 Australian homes on average, over the course of a year*.
The proposed wind farm, which would also feature a containerised battery energy storage system, would offset up to 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually**. The project would connect to the National Electricity Market via transmission infrastructure upgraded as part of Project EnergyConnect.
The project will be classified a State Significant Development and will undergo a rigorous planning and assessment process, with comprehensive stakeholder and community consultation required as part of this process.
The first community drop-in session will be held from 3pm-6pm on Tuesday, 23 August 2022 at the Midway Centre, 6 Midway Drive, Buronga. Community members will be able to talk to the Spark Renewables team to learn more about the project and provide initial feedback.
Anthony Marriner, Head of Spark Renewables, said: “We are excited to announce the Mallee Wind Farm project, which is expected to bring significant benefits to the local community and region in the form of jobs and investment, as well as funding for local community initiatives through a community fund that would be established for the life of the project.
“The proposed site for the Mallee Wind Farm has been chosen as it has a number of highly favourable factors, including a strong wind resource, good location within the South-West Renewable Energy Zone in New South Wales, and the very low density of housing within 10 kilometres,” said Marriner.
“Additionally, the proposed site features a flat terrain, meaning that complex earthworks would be avoided during construction, and the site can continue to be used for grazing and cropping purposes, with turbines taking up less than two percent of the proposed project site.”
“Spark Renewables is committed to supporting the local communities we become a part of. Our track record of engaging authentically with, and delivering strong benefits to, the local community whilst minimising disruption, is important to us. This includes our commitment to engaging with First Nations community members and businesses throughout the project consultation, construction and operation phases. To help us keep delivering on these commitments, we strongly encourage local community members to participate in community consultation where they can, and to ask questions and provide feedback to our team,” said Marriner.
For more information, read the Mallee Wind Farm project community newsletter here. The Spark Renewables team can also be reached on 1300 271 419.
*based on household consumption of 6,700 kWh/year
**based on National Greenhouse Account Factors (DCCEEW, 2021)
ENDS
Contact:
Julian Kasby
M: 0411 638 651
E: julian.kasby@stage.sparkrenewables.com