Work has begun on the Bulgana Green Power Hub in Stawell, a major new wind farm with battery storage in Western Victoria.

Minister for Energy Lily D’Ambrosio today turned the first sod on the project – which will create an estimated 1,300 jobs, including 270 direct ongoing jobs in the agricultural sector and 10 direct ongoing jobs in the renewable energy industry.

A 15-year Support Agreement between the Labor Government and Neoen Australia will deliver the Bulgana Green Power Hub, an integrated energy project of a scale and technology that has never been seen before.

The Green Power Hub will comprise a 194 MW wind farm with Siemens-Gamesa wind turbines, combined with a 20 MW/34 MWh lithium-ion battery provided by Tesla. AusNet Services, the owners and operators of the Victorian electricity transmission network, will develop the transmission connection for the project.

The wind farm is due to be completed by late 2019 and it is expected it could generate over 740,000 MWh of emission-free, clean, renewable energy every year.

The project will help secure the Labor Government’s greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets of 15 to 20 per cent by 2020.

The development of the wind farm will provide an immediate boost to the Stawell economy with construction benefiting local businesses. The wind farm and battery storage system will provide reliable, affordable, renewable energy to unlock the development of a major new advanced agriculture facility in Stawell.

The hub will be backed up by the 20MW battery to make the farms expansion a reality by providing the secure and affordable energy that Nectar Farms needs for its hydroponic greenhouses.

This project will make the advanced agriculture facility the world’s first ever crop farm to be completely powered by renewable energy.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio

“This is an exciting next step in delivering affordable, sustainable and clean energy – creating jobs right across Victoria.”

“We’re reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and the Bulgana Green Power Hub is helping us meet our ambitious renewable energy targets.”

Quote attributable to Member for Western Victoria Jaala Pulford

“Renewable energy projects like this one are delivering new jobs across Western Victoria in our agricultural sector, and importantly helping create a more sustainable future for regional communities.”