New South Wales’ largest wind farm is set to begin construction at the end of the year after reaching financial close, according to Tilt Renewables.
Comprising 66 wind turbines, the Rye Park Wind Farm (RPWF) is set to produce 396MW of power when fully operational in 2024. Owned by Tilt Renewables, which was recently acquired by clean power provider Powering Australian Renewables, RPWF will be the largest operating wind farm in New South Wales, generating enough power for 215,000 homes annually.
Located north of Yass and east of Boorowa near the township of Rye Park, the wind farm will connect to the National Electricity Market via TransGrid’s 330kV Yass to Gullen Range Line via a new 330kV connection substation.
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The site has been selected for its exposed windy ridges, grazing land and proximity to the national electricity grid.
RPWF will offset 960,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, which is the equivalent to removing 300,000 cars from the road.
On completion, RPWF will be the second-largest wind farm project in Australia, overtaking the Sapphire Wind Farm. The Rye Park Wind Farm will be constructed utilising 66 Vestas EnVentus V162-6.0MW wind turbines. Electrical and civil works will be completed by Zenviron while Lumea will be responsible for grid connection.
More than half of RPWF’s output has been contracted on a 15-year agreement with Newcrest Mining Limited to power its Cadia gold mine, with the remaining power available to replace generation that will be lost by the closure of the Lidell Power Station by 2023.
