29-05-2025
Why 14 turbines at one of Australia's first wind farms are about to be torn down - marking the end of an era
Australian's first commercial wind farm is set to be painstakingly dismantled by cranes as the turbines reach the end of their 20-year lifespan.
Sitting on rolling green hills overlooking Port Fairy in southwest Victoria, Pacific Blue's Codrington Windfarm is considered a 'close to perfect' location for wind towers.
When the site opened in 2001, it was not only Australia's first commercial windfarm but also the largest of any kind in the country.
The wind farm generates enough energy required to power 10,000 homes each year while avoiding the emission of nearly 50,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases.
But almost 24 years later, the site's 14 50metre-high turbines are among the first of its generation to approach the end of their working lives.
Pacific Blue said it hopes to become a renewables industry leader 'twice over' in its approach to dismantling the turbines using cranes.
The project is a massive undertaking but is more likely to win the approval of surrounding communities than the alternative method of using explosives.
'A decision was recently made that all turbines at the Codrington Wind Farm will be disassembled onsite through the use of cranes in the reverse order of how the turbines were assembled,' a Pacific Blue spokesperson told Renew Economy.
'This project is the first of its kind in Australia and we take this responsibility very seriously.'
Earlier this year, Pacific Blue announced it would not be repowering the ageing turbines and would, instead, explore options for their decommissioning.
According to the company, which is headquartered east of the wind farm in Melbourne, the site is no longer commercially viable.
To keep the site operational, its grid connection would require significant upgrades.
And if the company were to replace the turbines with more modern equivalents, spacing requirements would preclude the installation of any more than four.
'The company's analysis considered the limitations of space on the site and necessary upgrades to modernise the grid equipment, ultimately resolving that a new project at Codrington is not financially viable for this location,' it said in a statement.
Pacific Blue said permit conditions require the turbines to be decommissioned within 12 months after the farm stops generating power.
According to Re-Alliance, 85 wind farms across Australia are due to retire by 2045.
Given the relatively young age of Australia's wind farm industry, the question of how best to decommission retirement-age farms remains an open one.
'Pacific Blue has a long-standing relationship with the communities surrounding Codrington and its other four wind farms operating in the region,' the company said.
'The company will continue to engage with them regularly throughout the decommissioning.
'Broader community and stakeholder engagement is planned for the second half of 2025, once a clearer timeline for final generation is established and regulatory approvals for the decommissioning plan are in place.'
