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Harnessing far north winds

Nearly one quarter of electricity in Queensland is currently generated by renewable energy sources. With more wind farms, solar farms and hydrogen plants on the horizon, Queensland’s target of 50% renewable energy by 2030 is within reach.

One of those wind farms is located on the Atherton Tablelands in Far North Queensland. The 157MW Kaban Green Power Hub will include 28 wind turbines, reaching heights of 226m, with 79m blades. A 100MW battery has been approved for the project, along with a network upgrade.

Kaban’s Construction Project Manager at Neoen Australia, George Schinckel says, ‘we are delighted that energy from our wind farm will directly contribute to the state’s target of switching to 50% renewables by 2030.’

‘The project is expected to produce approximately 476GWh of renewable energy per annum, equivalent to taking approximately 96,000 cars off the road.’

The location for the Kaban Green Power Hub was identified because it’s particularly windy and next to a 275kV transmission line for rapid export to the grid.

The project was approved in 2018 and supports the state government’s Queensland new-industry development strategy (QNIDS), which guides industries to take advantage of the global decarbonisation opportunity.

How does wind generate electricity?

Wind is converted into mechanical energy when it rotates the blades of a wind turbine. This energy is converted into electricity via a generator in the nacelle, then sent to the grid. The amount of electricity generated is proportional to the wind speed cubed, so positioning turbines in high, windy areas is essential for ensuring affordability. Wind turbines are typically hundreds of metres tall, to allow space between the blades and neighbouring treetops.

Who’s involved?

The Kaban Green Power Hub is owned and operated by Neoen. Neoen is France’s leading independent producer of renewable energy and has invested more than $4 billion large-scale projects throughout Australia.

Neoen has been working with Powerlink Queensland, a government owned corporation (GOC) delivering the transmission component of the project, to provide power to more than 5 million Queenslanders.

Another GOC, CleanCo, has signed a Capacity Purchase Agreement (CPA) with Neoen, to buy 100% of the energy generated at the Kaban Green Power Hub, at a fixed annual price. CleanCo can integrate the energy generated by the wind farm into their portfolio and dispatch it at globally competitive prices.

Renewable Energy Zone: North Queensland

The Queensland Government has been working with these three companies to establish the state’s first renewable energy zone (REZ). Each REZ has high quality renewable resources, such as wind, with suitable land for supporting projects. Multiple generators will be connected in one location, for a cost-effective and reliable grid.

The Northern QREZ, where the Kaban wind farm is located, stretches from Cairns to Mackay. This uppermost region of the transmission system is weak because of the lack of power plants and risk of severe weather events, such as lightning storms.

‘These transmission line upgrades mean that the region will have better resilience during its cyclone and storm seasons and so help to reduce the potential for blackouts,’ says George.

Fortunately, the Kaban wind farm will improve the strength of the grid. As part of the first stage of delivery, Powerlink is upgrading the network south of Cairns, to improve energy security.

The Northern QREZ will be connected to the CopperString 2032 project, a 1,100km transmission line running from Townsville to Mount Isa and into the SuperGrid. The Queensland SuperGrid will set our state up to deliver renewable power to Queenslanders and meet our clean energy targets.

'The Kaban Green Power Hub will connect into the new SuperGrid, which has also seen a strong financial commitment from the Queensland Government,’ explains George.

These transmission line upgrades have the potential to deliver up to 500MW of energy to the grid – that's more than the region currently has the capacity to generate, so the technology can support future renewable projects.

Consulting First Nations peoples

Kaban Green Power Hub is located on Jirrbal country.

‘Jirrbal representatives were engaged to perform monitoring of the cultural heritage on the project throughout construction and we achieved more than 10% First Nations employment on the project, which we are very proud of,‘ says George.

A Cultural Heritage Management Plan (CHMP) including benefit-sharing commitments was registered with the state government in 2019, and successfully executed.

‘Kaban Green Power Hub also created an opportunity for a young Jirrbal artist, Wanirr Godden to develop a mural that is now installed on one of our wind turbines, working closely with a more experienced Injinoo artist Teho Ropeyarn,’ says George.

‘The artwork is inspired by elements from the Jirrbal cultural heritage and was created with guidance from Jirrbal Elder Marcelle Godden.’

Local opportunities blowing in

Neoen has targets to employ local people for their projects, and this north Queensland wind farm is no exception.

‘Kaban Green Power Hub created up to 250 jobs in the region during its construction phase,’ says George.

Once operational, there will be another four, full-time roles available for the lifetime of the plant – that’s for a period of over 25 years.

‘Powerlink estimates a further 100 jobs were created during the construction and improvements of the transmission line,’ says George.

These commitments also extended to the Jirrbal people through the creation of an Indigenous Engagement Strategy.

Local farmers hosting the turbines will also be able to earn revenue from the project.

Get wind of this...

Queensland has historically relied on carbon-based industries, but our economy is shifting to overcome climate related challenges. Fortunately, our state’s natural resources are essential for developing low emission technologies and there is increased global demand for renewables.

As part of the Queensland new-industry development strategy (QNIDS), the department has established the Local economic opportunities (LEO) network. LEO supports communities to harness regional economic diversification and helps businesses capitalise on the opportunities of decarbonisation. Find out what support is available for Queensland businesses on our website.  

Discover another exciting renewable energy project in Queensland - the Kogan Renewable Hydrogen Demonstration Plant.

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