And more community grant funding has been promised as a result of four projects being granted “right of access” by the NSW Government last week.
Two of them have footprints in Murrumbidgee Council and Edward River Council, with the other two across Edward River and Hay Shire boundaries.
One of the four projects is the Yanco Delta Wind Farm.
Its proponents, Origin Energy, have an agreement with the Edward River and Murrumbidgee Councils that they would receive $5 million each in community contributions if the project was successful.
Murrumbidgee Council has earmarked its funds for a new medical centre at Jerilderie.
Mayor Ruth McRae, this week, said council has not yet received any further correspondence on when the agreement would be triggered, or when the money would be available.
The other renewable energy projects given the green light are the Spark Renewables Dinawan Energy Hub near Jerilderie (wind, solar and battery), Someva’s Pottinger Energy Park (wind and battery) and the Bullawah Wind Farm project proposed by BayWa r.e. which are both located between Deniliquin and Hay.
The South West REZ is centred around Hay and stretches from near Jerilderie to Balranald and Buronga.
The location was chosen due to an abundance of high-quality wind and solar resources, proximity to existing and planned high voltage transmission including Project EnergyConnect, relative land-use compatibility and a strong pipeline of proposed projects.
At its peak, this REZ is expected to support more than 2000 construction jobs in the region.
While this and the benefits to the local economy have been celebrated, this week’s announcement has also been met with opposition.
Community members have expressed ongoing concerns about the impact renewable energy infrastructure may have on the environment and health, and in reducing the amount of productive land.
Between them, the four projects will see the construction of 693 wind turbines, the installation of 1.7 million solar modules and the provision of two battery storage systems with 300 megawatt and 400 megawatt capacities.
Minister for Climate Change and Energy Penny Sharpe said the wind, solar and large-scale battery projects will have a combined generation capacity of 3.56 gigawatts, estimated to be enough to power more than 1.6 million homes a year.
Her department said the South-West REZ projects will play a critical role in ensuring reliable, more affordable and clean energy as the state’s existing power stations retire.
The REZ is expected to create more than 2800 jobs at the height of construction.
This includes opportunities for about 265 apprentices.
“The South West Renewable Energy Zone is expected to drive more than $17 billion in private investment in solar, wind and energy storage projects, and this landmark tender shows the high interest in investing in New South Wales,” the minister said.
“These projects will help ensure New South Wales has enough renewable energy generation and storage when coal-fired power stations retire.
“They also give certainty to host-communities, who will directly benefit from the fees paid by these companies to connect to the REZ.”
More planning will need to be finalised before the projects can begin, and proponents have said community input would be important in continuing development.
“We look forward to continuing to work closely with our host landowners and local stakeholders to develop and construct Yanco Delta Wind Farm in a way that minimises impacts and ensures the region gets to share in the benefits that will flow from a project of this scale,” Origin CEO Frank Calabria said.
Similarly, Someva Renewables managing director Jamie Chivers said their project - delivered in partnership with AGL Energy, has been about “working with the local community to ensure that the benefits of renewable energy are shared”.
“From supporting more resilient and sustainable local farming operations, to providing employment and training opportunities and direct support for community and First Nations groups, the Pottinger Energy Park is designed with the region’s long-term prosperity in mind,” he said.
EnergyCo chief executive Hannah McCaughey said the first projects are expected to come online between 2027 to 2030.
