South Eastern Times
Thursday 22/2/2007 Page: 6
THE first 10 of the 53 turbines comprising the second stage of the multimillion dollar Lake Bonney wind farm have been erected and are set to be connected to the national grid. The latest turbines will each generate three megawatts of power and this will be the equivalent of the needs of up to 3,000 households. The 46 turbines in Lake Bonney stage one only have a generating capacity of 1.75 megawatts.
Construction personnel engaged by Babcock and Brown Wind Partners have placed the latest turbines in close proximity to the existing structures on Poonada Road and Thiele Road, west of Tantanoola. The new turbines are distinctive as they are larger than their predecessors and are currently non-operational.
Other turbines are currently in the process of being erected nearby as their towers, nacelles and blades are on site, along with cranes and associated construction apparatus. There is no public access to the construction sites. The construction team erects an average of three turbines per fortnight.
In contrast to Lake Bonney stage one, the towers for stage two are not passing through Mt Burr, Millicent Agricultural Bureau Drive and Tantanoola en route to the wind farm. This is because the stage two towers have been manufactured in Portland.
Preliminary siteworks got underway in June. When completed later this year or early 2008, the first two stages will have 99 wind turbines, generating almost 240 megawatts, and will be the largest operational windfarm in the Southern Hemisphere. The nearby Canunda windfarm, with 23 wind turbines, is operated by a separate company, International Power.
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