Windy Hill Wind Farm
Windy Hill Wind Farm
CountryAustralia
LocationRavenshoe, Queensland
Coordinates17°35′32″S 145°31′50″E / 17.59222°S 145.53056°E / -17.59222; 145.53056
StatusOperational
Construction began1999 (1999)
Commission dateAugust 2000 (2000-08)
Construction cost$20 million
Owner(s)RATCH-Australia
Wind farm
TypeOnshore
Site usageFarm land
Hub height46 m (151 ft)
Rotor diameter44 m (144 ft)
Rated wind speed13-25 m/s
Site elevation1,090 m (3,576 ft)
Power generation
Units operational20
Make and modelEnercon: E40
Nameplate capacity12MW
External links
Websitewww.tsinfrastructurefund.com/page/Infrastructure_Assets/Windy_Hill_wind_farm

Windy Hill Wind Farm is a wind power station near Ravenshoe on the Atherton Tableland, Queensland, Australia. It has 20 wind turbines with a generating capacity of 12 MW of electricity, providing enough power for about 3,500 homes. The cost of the project was A$20 million. It was the second wind farm to be constructed in Queensland after the 0.45Mw station on Thursday Island (1997).

The power station was commissioned in 2000 and was initially operated by the Stanwell Corporation. In December 2007 Windy Hill was sold to Transfield Services Infrastructure Fund (TSIF) as part of the Queensland Government's ClimateSmart 2050 strategy.[1][2] A new substation was built to allow the wind farm's power to connect to the existing 66 kV transmission line.[3] RATCH-Australia bought TSIF in 2011.

Wind turbines

The construction contractor for the wind farm was Powercorp.[3] The wind turbines are located on private land that continues to be used as a dairy farm.[4] Each tower is 44 metres (144 ft) high.[3] The turbines used at the facility are Enercon E40.[3] They can rotate at speeds between 14 rpm to 38 rpm.[3] Power from the turbines is carried by underground cable to the electricity grid.

Issues in 2023

Unused wind turbine blades are stored near the site.[5][6] The contractor says these blades are being recycled.[7]

There are aboriginal groups both for and against any extension of the current wind farm.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Stanwell Annual Report 2008" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 September 2009.
  2. ↑ "TSI Fund Acquires Five Wind Farms" (PDF). Transfield Services. 29 November 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 April 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Windy Hill - Phase 1". Clean Energy Council. Archived from the original on 10 April 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  4. ↑ "Things to do and see: Windy Hill Wind Farm". Queensland Holidays. Tourism Queensland. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  5. ↑ "'Dirty big secret': Wind turbine GRAVEYARD found in Aussie forest". 2GB. 25 July 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  6. ↑ July 26; 2023 - 9:34pm (26 July 2023), Wind turbine sustainability under scrutiny as old ones left in quarry, retrieved 11 October 2023{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. ↑ Vorrath, Sophie (4 August 2023). ""Turbine graveyard" debunked: Anatomy of a media anti-wind scare campaign". RenewEconomy. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  8. ↑ "Traditional owners to take fight to Canberra over wind farm to be built near protected rainforests". ABC News. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.


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