The massive Golden Plains Wind Farm project, to be built "on a scale never seen before in the Southern Hemisphere", has secured an operator, equity funding and a turbine supplier.
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The proposal is to build more than 200 wind turbines around Rokewood, south of Ballarat in Victoria, in one of the largest on-shore wind power projects in Australia - each turbine could be 200 metres tall, with a blade arc larger than the diameter of the MCG.
Construction on the first phase, which would include 122 turbines, could begin as soon as June.
Proponent and developer WestWind stated $3 billion of equity funds had been supplied by European conglomerate TagEnergy, which will also operate the project.
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Vestas has signed up as supplier for the turbines themselves, which will produce about 6.2 megawatts each when in operation.
A large-scale battery storage facility will also be built nearby, with a 300MW capacity.
WestWind states the project will be able to power about eight per cent of Victoria, or 750,000 when complete, or "every home in regional Victoria", according to a media release.
The project had faced some opposition from residents during its development, including concerns over brolga populations in the area, but this was resolved with a planning permit amendment issued from the state government late last year.
The media release noted "(t)he Golden Plains Shire has a strong wind resource which, combined with vastly cleared land thanks to decades of agricultural activity, makes a great canvas to build upon".
"The high voltage 500kv powerline which runs directly adjacent to the southern boundary of the site allows for direct access to the energy grid, removing the need for additional power lines beyond the boundaries of the project."
WestWind was contacted for further comment.
