Sydney Airport to source power from 135-MW wind park

Sydney Airport will cover up to 75% of its electricity needs with power coming from the 135-MW Crudine Ridge wind farm in New South Wales.

The airport operator, Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX:SYD), said on Wednesday it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Aussie utility Origin Energy (ASX:ORG) and Grassroots Renewable Energy to buy power from the particular wind farm. The power purchase agreement (PPA) is in line with the airport’s goal to cut its carbon footprint by 50% by 2025 and its renewables transition plan.

The AUD-250-million (USD 184m/EUR 159m) Crudine Ridge project is being implemented under the Grassroots Renewable Energy Platform, a joint initiative between Australia’s CWP Renewables and Swiss investment manager Partners Group AG. Origin Energy will provide baseload firming under the three-partie deal, thus guaranteeing supply during periods of lower wind generation.

The wind farm, itself, will be located near Mudgee, using 37 General Electric turbines of 3.63 MW each. The plant will feed its output into the Transgrid network, with the electricity expected to be enough to supply around 55,000 homes annually. It already has in place an off-take contract for 50% of its output with the Aussie unit of New Zealand’s Meridian Energy Ltd (NZE:MEL). Construction of the plant is currently ongoing and is expected to be completed at end-2019.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.734/EUR 0.635)

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