Willogoleche wind farm is a 119MW onshore wind power project being developed by Engie near Hallet, approximately 160km north of Adelaide, Australia.
Construction works for the wind farm started in early-2017 and first power is expected by the end of 2018.
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Willogoleche is Engie’s second wind farm in Australia following the 46MW Canunda wind farm, which has been operational since 2005.
Estimated to cost $250m, the Willogoleche wind farm will be capable of producing enough electricity to power 80,000 homes in South Australia.
Willogoleche wind farm location and make-up
The wind farm site, spread over 2,278.6ha of land in Willogoleche Hill, roughly 5km from the town of Hallett, is located in one of the windiest regions in South Australia, with average wind speed of 8.6m per second.
The wind farm consists of 32 advanced turbines out of which 24 are of 3.83MW and eight are of 3.43MW rated capacity.
Each turbine, with a rotor diameter of 130m, will be placed on an 85m-high tower. The tip height of each turbine will be 150m above ground level.
Majority of the turbines will be at a distance of 5km from the Hallet Township. The closest turbine will be at a distance of 3.2km west of Hallet and the farthest at a distance of 8.3km to the south-west of the township.
Willogoleche wind farm construction
Pre-construction works for the wind farm started in January 2017. Roads and hardstands for turbines were completed by February 2018. The first of the 32 turbine towers was erected in April 2018.
Financing
Financial closure for the Willogoleche Hill wind farm was reached in August 2017 with China Investment Corporation (CIC) and French investment bank Natixis underwriting a A$250m ($198m) debt facility for the project.
Electricity transmission and power purchase agreement
The electricity generated by the Willogoleche wind farm will be fed to the national grid via underground cabling and a new substation located adjacent to ElectraNet’s Belalie-Mokota 275kV transmission line. The substation will have a single 275/33kV transformer and multiple 33kV feeders to collect power from individual wind turbine generators.
The power generated from the project will be sold to Simply Energy, the energy retail arm of Engie in Australia.
Contractors involved with Willogoleche wind project
GE was contracted to supply and install the turbines of Willogoleche wind farm. Australian construction and civil engineering company CATCON is responsible for the construction of the wind farm.
EBS Ecology was contracted to undertake the ecological assessment for the project.
Swanbury Penglasse Architects, based in Adelaide, were engaged to minimise the impact of the wind farm on landscape and visual amenity.
International law firm Herbert Smith Freehills provided advisory services for the project financing, procurement, connection, off-take, property as well as planning and environment aspects of the project.
Acoustic consulting firm Sonus was contracted to undertake the environment noise assessment of the wind farm.
Hart Aviation Consulting reviewed the impact of the Willogoleche wind farm expansion on the air traffic.
