In 2027, Australia’s Golden Plains wind farm project is set to begin commercial operations. This wind farm has a total power generation capacity of 1.3 GW and is part of the country’s efforts to phase out fossil fuels and reach net zero emissions by 2050. Unlike many other countries that focus on offshore wind farms, Australia is researching terrestrial wind power technology.
Despite using smaller capacity turbines compared to offshore turbines, Australia has built the largest wind farm in the Southern Hemisphere, the Golden Plains Wind Farm. Located in Golden Plains Shire, Victoria, this project is expected to be an alternative to the Yallourn coal power plant which will be decommissioned in 2028. The 2.7 billion USD project is being conducted by TagEnergy company.
Construction on the Golden Plains Wind Farm began in 2023 and is divided into two phases. The first phase will have a power generation capacity of 756 MW, utilizing Vestas V162-6.2 MW wind turbines. The second phase will see an additional 93 turbines of the same capacity installed, increasing the electricity generation capacity by 577 MW. Once the second phase is operational in 2027, the wind farm is expected to produce 4,500 GWh of electricity annually, meeting 8% of Victoria’s energy needs.
Andrew Riggs, manager at TagEnergy stated that this project significantly improves Victoria’s energy security, reduces pressure on electricity costs and helps to reduce carbon pollution. By accelerating the energy transition, the wind farm is moving Australia closer to achieving its goal of net zero emissions.
