Essential Energy has announced that its 145MW Flyers Creek Wind Farm, located 20km south of Orange in New South Wales, is now operational after a decade of planning and construction.
As one of the most significant renewable energy projects in the Essential Energy network, it delivers clean, reliable power to regional, rural and remote communities while supporting Australia’s energy transition.
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With 38 General Electric turbines, Flyers Creek generates enough to power 80 thousand homes, which is enough power to cover Bathurst and Orange combined.
Iberdrola Flyers Creek Wind Farm site manager Josh Fitzgerald said, “Working with Essential Energy has been a great collaboration from building and commissioning the switching station to relocating multiple assets. It’s been a long but fun project.”
Essential Energy major network connections manager Darrin Edwards said one of the biggest advantages of Flyers Creek Wind Farm was its ability to strengthen the energy network. Unlike solar farms, wind farms generate power at different times, ensuring a more balanced and resilient renewable energy supply.
“The benefit of connecting wind farms in Essential Energy’s network is that we already have a considerable amount of solar… so we need more wind-based technology,” Edwards said.
Bringing Flyers Creek online was a complex task, requiring extensive coordination to integrate it into the network. Securing outages for such a significant connection was challenging, but careful planning ensured a smooth transition.
“There was a lot of negotiations around when we could have outages in the network to be able to connect this piece of kit,” Edwards explained.
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Like any major infrastructure project, Flyers Creek faced its share of challenges—from weather disruptions to unexpected technical hurdles. Yet, through perseverance and collaboration, the team overcame these obstacles.
“At the end of the day, we got it connected, and that was extremely pleasing to see,” Edwards said.
