Queensland govt facilitates 1.2-GW wind project

The government of Queensland, Australia, on Thursday said it has advanced a wind project worth up to AUD 2 billion (USD 1.49bn/EUR 1.36bn) to build a 1.2-GW wind farm in the Wide Bay region as part of the state government's investment facilitation services.

The proposed project is developed by Forest Wind Holdings, a joint venture between local renewables company CleanSight Pty Ltd and Siemens Financial Service, part of German conglomerate Siemens AG (ETR:SIE).

As part of the project, Forest Wind Holdings plans to install up to 226 wind turbines within state forest land between Gympie and Maryborough, the minister for state development, manufacturing, infrastructure and planning, Cameron Dick, said. The wind farm would be one of the biggest grid-connected wind projects in the southern hemisphere, he noted, generating power for over 550,000 homes and boosting the state's installed power generation capacity by about 9%.

The project will now enter the detailed assessment phase. Subject to receiving all necessary approvals, construction of the wind park could begin in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to Forest Wind Holdings.

The state government support for the project comes as Queensland is looking to achieve a goal of generating 50% of its energy from renewable sources by 2030, the minister for natural resources and energy Anthony Lynham said.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.747/EUR 0.679)

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