Waubra Wind Farm
The Project
The Waubra Wind Farm Project is located in Waubra, approximately 35kms North West of Ballarat and is the largest renewable power project in the Southern Hemisphere. The Wind Farm is situated in two municipalities, the Shire of Pyrenees and the City of Ballarat. The project site (approximately 173km²) is a series of hills and high plateaus which form part of the Great Dividing Range. The site consists primarily of cleared agricultural land used for sheep and cattle grazing and potato growing.
The Waubra Wind Farm began generating sustainable, green power in February 2009 became fully operational in July 2009.
The Waubra Wind Farm comprises 128 wind turbines, associated access tracks, substations and a Maintenance Facility. Each turbine can generate 1.5 megawatts (MW), providing a total installed capacity of 192MW. The green energy generated by the Wind Farm each year can deliver approximately 650,000 tonnes of CO2 savings. At peak, the Wind Farm will generate enough green energy to power more than 140,000 homes or enough electricity for the City of Ballarat and surrounding areas. The Waubra Wind Farm will help Victoria to meet it's future energy needs without further contributing to the cause of climate change.
The Waubra Wind Farm Project has been supported through the Victorian State Government’s commitment to a Victorian Renewable Energy Target (VRET). The VRET provides regulatory stability for investments in clean energies by requiring that electricity retailers purchase a minimum 20 per cent renewable energy by 2020. This scheme fosters the sale of energy produced from wind farms and other renewable energy methods including solar, biomass, hydropower and geothermal.
Wind Farm Design
ACCIONA Energy engaged in significant consultation with the local community on the Wind Farm design. Detailed information on the design was presented to the Community Reference Group (CRG) and at a Community Information Day. The completed, detailed design includes the electrical design, the selection of turbines that best fit the terrain at Waubra, a lighting plan for aviation safety and the design of a sustainable, maintenance building. ACCIONA Energy continues to keep the community informed and engaged through several methods including quaterly meetings with the CRG, Newsletters and Project Updates.
Electrical design
The design of the electrical system consists of mostly underground cabling, some overhead lines, five substations and a terminal substation. All electrical cables between turbines are installed underground to reduce the amount of overhead lines required.
Turbine selection
The Waubra Wind Farm site topography is a combination of hills and flat plains. Wind turbines have been selected to match the particular wind conditions and this local terrain. The detailed design includes three turbine configurations; all are based on the same ACCIONA Windpower 1.5 megawatt model, but with a combination of tower heights and blade lengths. Tower heights and blade lengths range from 110 and 120 metres.
Night lighting for aviation safety
As just over half of the turbines in the Wind Farm will have a maximum blade tip height above 110m, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) recommended installing aviation safety lighting. Lights are installed on 48 of the 128 wind turbines to ensure the Waubra Wind Farm turbines are visible to aircraft pilots in hours of darkness.
Above: Facility Manager, Glenn Wright at the Waubra Wind Farm Maintenance Facility.
Sustainable Maintenance Facility
The ACCIONA Energy, Waubra Wind Farm Maintenance Facility showcases environmentally sustainable design and visually complements the surrounding environment. The low energy building is constructed from sustainable materials and will be powered with 100% wind energy.
The construction of the Maintenance Facility was awarded to the regional company AW Nicholson. Construction was completed in October 2008. Final touches are currently underway for an indigenous garden and outside walk ways.
The Maintenance Facility caters for 26 permanent on-site staff. The 880 m² Facility is used for all maintenance activities and also provides storage space for equipment, vehicles and spare parts.
Construction
Turbine installation commenced in December 2007 and was completed in June 2009. Energisation and commissioning was completed in July 2009. The first turbines began generating green power in February 2009 and the entire site was fully operational from the July 2009.
ACCIONA Windpower, ACCIONA Energy’s sister company, supplied the turbine parts and managed the construction of the wind turbines.
The towers were produced by Keppel Prince Engineering, a local Portland company, and by Haywards Engineering in Tasmania. The nacelles and hubs were manufactured by ACCIONA Windpower in Pamplona, Spain, and the blades by Tecsis in Brazil.
Electrical works
Electrical works commenced in January 2008. Downer EDI Engineering was the lead contractor for the electrical works including laying underground cables, constructing 66KV overhead lines and building the five substations. Victorian company Powercor Electrical Services has been subcontracted to construct the overhead lines.
Regional Project Benefits
The Waubra Wind Farm is a significant investment in the region and is having a positive effect on the regional economy. Past Premier, Steve Bracks, and Minister for Energy Industries and Resources, Theo Theophanous, said the project would provide more jobs and economic activity for the region (click here to see their media release dated 18 July 2006).
The Wind Farm will also provide additional income for local landowners involved in the project and is also expected to bring tourism and the associated benefits to the area.
ACCIONA Energy is committed to using local construction and manufacturing skills and to sourcing local equipment and materials wherever possible. Aproximately 26 permanent jobs have been created for the ongoing operation and maintenance of the Wind Farm. At the peak of the construction phase, the Wind Farm had created around 200 jobs.
To date more than 20 regional businesses have been involved as subcontractors, such as Eureka Concrete from Ballarat. More than $200 million worth of supply, building and construction contracts were awarded by ACCIONA to local Australian companies for the Waubra Wind Farm, predominantly in Victoria; a further $2B worth of projects have been approved for wind farm construction in NSW, Victoria and South Australia.
