Pacific Blue’s Codrington Wind Farm in Victoria—one of the first to be commercially developed in Australia—is approaching the end of its technical life after more than 25 years.
Pacific Blue says it is focused on delivering a “thorough, respectful, and industry-leading decommissioning” of Codrington Wind Farm, which includes exploring recycling options for as much of the site’s infrastructure as possible.
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Last year, Pacific Blue met with landowners and local representatives to outline its early decommissioning plans, including its commitment to fully rehabilitate the site to the satisfaction of landholders and responsible authorities.
The company has also commenced early engagement with regulatory bodies at all levels, including local and state authorities, to discuss plans to safely decommission the wind farm.
Permit conditions require decommissioning to be completed within 12 months of the wind farm ceasing generation.
“At this stage, Pacific Blue is not pursuing a repowering option for Codrington,” the company said in a statement.
“The site’s grid connection would require significant upgrades and today’s turbine siting requirements would preclude the installation of latest generation turbines which can have an output of over five times that of Codrington’s current turbines. The company’s analysis considered the limitations of space on the site and necessary upgrades to modernise the grid equipment, ultimately resolving that a new project at Codrington is not financially viable for this location.
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“The company also needs to account for the needs and preferences of the site’s landholders, whom it has successfully partnered with for over 25 years. Pacific Blue is grateful for their continued support on this project, which in its milestone end-of-life decommissioning will become an Australian renewables industry leader twice over.”
Broader community and stakeholder engagement is planned for the second half of 2025, once a clearer timeline for final generation is established and regulatory approvals for the decommissioning plan are in place.
