By Melissa Coleman
Acciona Energia has received the green light from the Queensland government for the development of Herries Range wind farm in the MacIntyre Wind Farm Precinct, the largest wind project in Australia and the Southern Hemisphere.
The announcement was made on Monday morning at the Port of Brisbane by the Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
The expansion of the MacIntyre Wind Precinct located 60km west of Warwick will double its capacity adding another thousand megawatts of renewable energy to Queensland’s energy mix.
In total the precinct would reach a capacity of 2000MW, which is enough clean energy to supply the equivalent of 1.4 million homes per year.
The MacIntyre Wind Precinct currently consists of two wind farms; the MacIntyre and government-owned energy company CleanCo’s proposed Karara Wind Farm.
Acciona Energía’s managing director Brett Wickham said they were proud to announce that they have commenced development activities for the Herries Range Wind Farm.
“With this project, we expect to dramatically accelerate the decarbonization of Queensland’s electricity grid,” said Mr Wickham.
The leading renewable energy developer’s goal is to move from construction of the MacIntyre wind farm straight into the neighbouring Herries Range project.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the announcement showed that Queensland is a front-runner in attracting international investment in the global energy transformation.
“As we transition out of our coal-fire energy power phase, we will transform into a clean energy hub – this is the future.“
“Our Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan is all about bringing more cheaper, cleaner energy into the system while building the Queensland economy, and that’s exactly what this deal does,” the Premier said.
The Plan was released on Wednesday 28 September 2022 and outlined a number of renewable targets and actions, including a new renewable energy target of 70 per cent by 2032 and 80 per cent by 2035.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles said the 180-turbine Herries Range project would support up to 600 additional jobs during construction.
“The MacIntyre precinct hosts 400 jobs already.“
“This precinct will support ongoing local jobs and local supply chain opportunities with hundreds of millions of dollars in procurement from businesses based in and around towns like Warwick, Inglewood and Toowoomba,” he said.
Treasurer Cameron Dick said the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan would supercharge and underpin the state’s strong economic performance for generations to come.
“Queensland is perfectly positioned to capture and maximise the benefits of what truly is the biggest opportunity since the industrial revolution.”
“And with over 50 large-scale renewable energy projects now financially committed, under construction or operational across the state, it’s clear we have the policy settings right for a prosperous future powered by Queensland-made renewable electricity,” he said.
The next step in the process of development for the Herries Range project is the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC) review.
