Tas wind farm push sees turbines rolled out for Granville Harbour

First turbine components for the Granville Harbour wind farm will be moved from Burnie to Zeehan in the next few weeks.

Granville Harbour Wind Farm open day in Burnie. Visitors to the open day make their way around the giant components. Picture: Grant Wells

SEVERAL hundred tonnes of giant wind turbine components are about to hit the road as Tasmania continues its push in renewable energy production.

Operators of Granville Harbour Wind Farm held an open day in Burnie on Saturday, giving 500 curious members of the public access to a storage yard housing 372 components that will form part of the $280 million project under construction near Zeehan, on Tasmania’s West Coast.

Granville Harbour Wind Farm project manager Lyndon Frearson said the parts were shipped to Burnie over the past eight months. The first components will be moved in the next few weeks on a three-truck convoy operating between midnight and 10am.

Mr Frearson said residents along the transportation route would be notified this week and the long, wide load would make the 193km journey to Granville Harbour under the care of specialist contractors.

Blades for the turbines are 62m long and turbine bases each weigh 70 tonnes, with the total weight of parts estimated at several hundreds of tonnes.

Mr Frearson said it would only take three to five days to build each turbine once the parts arrived on site.

The first foundations were poured earlier this month and the farm expects to generate its first electricity in late 2019, with 200 workers involved in construction.

The farm will have 31 wind turbines, generating 112 megawatts — enough to service 46,000 homes (that’s nearly every household in North West Tasmania).

Hydro Tasmania will buy about 360 gigawatt-hours of energy a year from the farm.

It’s just one of many wind farm projects worth billions of dollars which are being proposed for Tasmania in an unprecedented surge to lead the way on renewable energy.

Granville Harbour Wind Farm project director Lyndon Frearson, at the Granville Harbour Wind Farm open day in Burnie on Saturday. Picture: GRANT WELLS

Acting Minister for Energy Peter Gutwein said the State Government was on track to achieve the 2022 target of 100 per cent self-sufficiency in renewable energy production, while delivering the country’s lowest regulated electricity prices.

“We have what the rest of Australia needs, low cost, reliable and clean energy, which is why the Commonwealth has invested $56 million to progress the Marinus Link second interconnector and committed to work with the Tasmanian Government to underwrite the first phase of Tasmania’s Battery of the Nation project,’’ he said.

“Backed by a second interconnector, our pumped hydro plans and new wind farm projects will create thousands of jobs and billions in investment in Tasmania over the coming years.”

There are wind farms now operating at Musselroe (56 turbines) in the state’s North-East and at Bluff Point (37 turbines) and Studland Bay (25 turbines) in the State’s North-West. Two are under construction at Cattle Hill (48 turbines) in the Central Plateau and Granville Harbour (31 turbines). And there are 10 more proposed farms, scattered across the North, North-West, North-East and Central Highlands.

The proposals have attracted some opposition, with former Greens leader Bob Brown and bird experts raising concerns about the potential impacts of the proposed 200-turbine wind farm on Robbins Island, in the state’s North West, which will be the biggest in the southern hemisphere if built.

Mr Gutwein said the State Government takes the protection of the state’s threatened species seriously and works closely with a wide range of stakeholders including the Board of the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) to support measures to minimise the risk to threatened species.

Here’s a quick guide to Tassie’s wind farms vision.

OPERATING

Musselroe.

Located in the North-East, operates 56 turbines, which generate 168 megawatts

Bluff Point.

In the state’s North-West, operates 37 turbines, which generate 65 megawatts

Studland Bay.

Also in the far North-West, operates 25 turbines, which generate 75 megawatts

Woolnorth operates all three wind farms in Tasmania and employ directly, and indirectly, about 40 people managing these operations.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Cattle Hill

Owned by Goldwind Australia and Power China, the project in the Central Plateau entails 48 wind turbines to generate 150 megawatts, enough to service 63,500 homes. Commissioning of turbines will start shortly. The project is employing about 150 people during construction, and 10 ongoing jobs to operate the facility, with major contracts signed with Tasmanian businesses including Hayward, Gradco and Hazel Bros.

Granville Harbour

Owned by Palisade Investment Partners, the project on the West Coast has 31 wind turbines to generate 112 megawatts, enough to service 46,000 homes. The first concrete pour for wind turbine foundations was conducted earlier this month and the site is expected to be operational in 2020. Operators say the Granville Harbour wind farm will create about 200 temporary jobs during construction and ten permanent jobs.

PROPOSED

Jim’s Plain, Robbins Island and Rushy Plains

Proposed by UPC Renewables and subject to development and environmental approvals, construction of Jim’s Plains wind farm is expected to start in 2020, followed by Robbins Island in 2021. Totalling over 1000 megawatts, UPC Renewables says these developments are expected to cost more than $1.5 billion and deliver more than 400 direct construction jobs over a four-year period, and support up to 65 direct jobs ongoing. UPC Renewables is also evaluating sites in North-East Tasmania, at Rushy Plains, to develop over 1000 megawatts.

Western Plains, St Patricks Plains, Hellyer and Guildford

Epuron is examining four sites for wind farm developments. These include the 46 megawatts Western Plains wind farm, near Stanley, and the St Patricks Plains wind farm, in central Tasmania, about 300 megawatts.

Both are in the community engagement and planning stages.

Epuron has reported that the proposed 80-turbine, 300-megawatts St Patrick’s wind farm near Miena is expected to cost $500 million, create more than 200 jobs during construction and 12-15 jobs ongoing.

Epuron is also undertaking feasibility assessments for the Hellyer wind farm in central Tasmania (40 turbines, 150 megawatt), and the Guildford wind farm, east of Waratah, (up to 80 turbines, 300 megawatts).

Port Latta

Nekon Pty Ltd’s proposal for a 25 megawatts wind farm at Port Latta has been assessed and approved through the EPA Board process. The construction of the wind farm is estimated to provide up to 15 construction jobs, and ongoing employment for the operation of the farm.

Low Head

Low Head Wind Farm Pty Ltd is the proponent for a proposed 42 megawatts wind farm east of Low Head. The proposed wind farm has been assessed and approved through the EPA Board process.

Whale Back Ridge

The West Coast Renewable Future’s project is in the early stages of evaluation. Early plans are for a wind farm inland of Granville Harbour of up to 500 turbines generating up to 1500 megawatts.