Mt Mercer Wind Farms

Golden Plains Miner
Thursday 26/4/2007 Page: 1

Westwind Energy Pty Ltd is very pleased that the Victorian Minister for Planning, the Hon. Justin Madden has approved the Mt Mercer Wind Farm project in Western Victoria. The Mt Mercer Wind Farm is Westwind Energy's first wind energy project in Australia and is located 30 km south of Ballarat in central Victoria.

The wind farm comprises up to 64 wind turbines of the 2 to 3 MW class and will produce over 390,000 MWh of clean electricity per year. This is equivalent to the annual consumption of more than 73,000 average Victorian households and is more than twice the number of households of the City of Ballarat.

Westwind Energy Pty Ltd is an Australian company and is part of the Germany based Westwind group of companies. The Westwind group has already developed and built 20 wind energy projects in Germany and also operates all of its projects. Australia, and in particular Victoria, is a key international market for Westwind's activities due to its abundant renewable energy resource and increasing State Government support for renewable energy projects. The Victorian Government's support for the wind energy industry has given Westwind Energy the confidence to establish its headquarters in Victoria and to develop wind energy projects here.

The Mt Mercer Wind Farm will also support the establishment of a major service and maintenance centre for wind turbines in the region. Not only will this bring new jobs and investment to provincial Victoria, the project will also contribute significantly towards the Victorian Governments initiatives to safeguard Victoria's energy future and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the power generation sector.

The Victorian Renewable Energy Target (VRET) scheme has stimulated a lot of interest in the Mt Mercer Wind Farm project from the electricity industry sector. The VRET scheme will require electricity retailers to purchase a minimum of 10 % of their power from renewable sources by 2016, up from the current level of around 4%. The scheme is designed to deliver substantial reductions of greenhouse gas emissions and is an important part of the Victorian Government's Environmental Sustainability Action Statement.

The company will continue to work with all stakeholders during the detailed planning, construction and operation phases and is hopeful to also earn the trust of those members of the community who still have some reservations about the project. Now that a decision has been made the whole community will be able to make the best out of a significant renewable energy project at Mt Mercer.

Westwind Energy will endeavour to become an integral part of this and other communities where the company plans to establish wind energy facilities. The Mt Mercer Wind Farm has been very carefully sited to comply with the Victorian guidelines for the development of wind energy facilities and is located in one of the windiest regions of Victoria that is close to existing major electricity grid infrastructure.

Westwind Energy is confident that, with the planning approval issued by Minister Madden, the project will soon reach financial closure. Subsequent to the preparation and endorsement of an Environmental Management Plan (and other documents referred to in the permit conditions) construction may commence in 2008.

The following is a response from the Golden Plains Shire. "Wind farms fall under the jurisdiction of the state government's planning process and Council has not played a direct role in the decision making associated with this project," CEO Rod Nicholls said. "In addition, the figures presented by the Planning Minister in his statement last Thursday highlight the significant environmental and economic benefits to be delivered by the project for the region."