Stanwell signs historic deal to acquire Australia’s largest publicly owned wind farm

• Stanwell and global renewable energy developer RES sign historic deal for Queenslanders to own the Tarong West Wind Farm in the South Burnett.
• The acquisition by the publicly owned generator for the 436.5MW wind farm project to be located south-west of Kingaroy follows the recent development approval issued by the state government.
• The Miles Government is backing the project with $776.1 million in funding committed to date.
• The project will create around 200 construction and 15 operational jobs.

The Miles Government has welcomed government-owned energy generator Stanwell’s acquisition of the 436.5MW Tarong West Wind Farm project from global renewable energy developer RES.

Stanwell CEO Michael O’Rourke and RES CEO Matt Rebbeck recently signed the historic agreement, meaning Queenslanders will own 100 per cent of the project and the clean energy it will produce.

The wind farm will bring around 200 construction jobs and hundreds more indirect jobs as well as 15 operational jobs to the South Burnett region.

The project, which recently received development approval, will feature 97 wind turbines and produce enough clean energy to power the equivalent of 230,000 homes.

A Final Investment Decision is expected in early 2025.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Energy and Clean Economy Jobs Mick de Brenni:

“Tarong West Wind Farm will be Australia’s largest publicly owned wind farm, which is a game changer for Queensland’s renewable energy future.

“This critical project will deliver not only enough clean energy to power the equivalent of 230,000 homes but it will bring an economic boost to the South Burnett with hundreds of clean energy jobs.

“Keeping Queensland assets in Queensland hands is how we have kept power prices down and it’s how we are going to achieve our renewable energy targets of 70% by 2032 and 80% by 2035.

“Only the Miles Government has a vision for Queensland’s future.  The LNP have already voted against our renewable energy targets and have announced cuts to major renewable energy projects.”

Quotes attributable to Stanwell CEO Michael O’Rourke:

“Adding the 436.5MW Tarong West Wind Farm project into Stanwell’s renewable energy portfolio is an exciting chapter not only in our renewable energy story, but also Queensland’s.

“It will play a critical role in transitioning our energy portfolio and brings us closer to our goal of having 9 to 10GW of large-scale wind and solar capacity by 2035.

“Stanwell now has more than 4000 MW of renewable energy and storage in our portfolio under contract, in development or under construction.

“We will continue to work constructively with RES and in close consultation with the South Burnett community, which we have been a proud part of for four decades, as we develop this project through to Final Investment Decision.”

Quotes attributable to RES CEO Matt Rebbeck:

“RES is excited to reach this significant milestone in the development of the Tarong West Wind Farm. It is a testament to the dedication and hard work of the project team to progress the development.

“RES is committed to continuing to work with key project stakeholders including the local community, landowners and traditional owners prior to the commencement of construction.

 “We welcome Stanwell’s involvement in the project as we work to achieve a cleaner, more sustainable energy future for Queensland.”

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