Bodangora wind farm is a 113.2MW onshore power project developed approximately 20km north-east of Wellington town in central New South Wales (NSW), Australia. The project was estimated to cost more than £131m (A$237m).
The plant’s owner and operator Infigen Energy submitted a planning proposal for the wind project to the New South Wales (NSW) Department of Planning and Infrastructure in May 2012. The proposal was granted approval by the Planning Assessment Commission (PAC) in September 2013.
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Construction on the windfarm began in April 2017, while the first wind turbine was assembled at the facility in March 2018.
The wind farm started generating power in August 2018, while full-scale commercial operattions started in February 2019.
The project created approximately 120 jobs during the construction phase and seven full-time jobs during operation.
The Bodangora windfarm is expected to generate 361GWh of clean electricity a year, which is sufficient to power 49,000 NSW households and offset more than 800,000t of carbon emissions a year.
Bodangora windfarm location and infrastructure
The Bodangora windfarm is spread across 7,820ha of farmland, which is used for sheep and cattle grazing. The site lies in the South Western Slopes Bioregion between the foothills and isolated ranges.
It is installed with 33 General Electric (GE) wind turbines rated at 3.43MW each. The maximum tip height of the turbine is 150m and the blade span diameter is 130m. The turbine’s blades are 63.7m in length and weigh approximately 19t.
The wind farm features an operation and maintenance building, a construction compound, parking, as well as temporary and permanent wind monitoring masts.
Approximately 39km of new and upgraded access tracks are built at the site.
Financing
The Bodangora wind project was financed through a combination of equity and debt.
The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) and German Landesbank NORD/LB provided debt facilities totalling A$163m (£90.2m), while Infigen provided the remaining A$74m (£41m) in equity for the project.
Infigen will also contribute £39,618 ($50,000) a year to the Bodangora windfarm for 25 years from the start of operations.
Power transmission from Bodangora
Power generated by the Bodangora wind farm is fed to a new 33/132kV substation and transmission line built at the facility. The transmission line , in turn, connects the windfarm to the Transgrid 132kV network on the Wellington substation and Beryl transmission line.
“The Bodangora windfarm is expected to generate 361GWh of clean electricity a year.”
Other transmission infrastructure such as transformers, microwave towers, switchyards, and underground and overhead cabling are also installed as part of the project.
Power purchase agreement
EnergyAustralia will purchase 60% of the renewable energy generated from the Bodangora windfarm under a power purchase agreement (PPA), which is valid up to December 2030.
The remaining output is sold by Infigen either to commercial and industrial customers or in spot/wholesale electricity market.
Contractors involved with Bodangora windfarm
A consortium comprising General Electric (GE) and Civil & Allied Technical Construction (CATCON) was awarded an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to build the Bodangora windfarm.
GE was responsible for the supply and installation of the wind turbines, while CATCON oversaw the construction activities.
Australian firm Consolidated Power Projects (CPP) was appointed as the primary contractor by TransGrid to construct the substation and transmission line.
NJ Construction was selected to perform construction and commissioning of access tracks and transmission line, under a subcontract with CPP.
Norton Rose Fulbright and Herbert Smith Freehills acted as the legal advisors to Infigen Energy for the development of the Bodangora windfarm.
