As a part of the Queensland governments goal of generating 50% of its energy through renewable sources by 2030, the government announced in December 2019 that the
Forest Wind project is under
comprehensive evaluation. After receiving all approvals from the respective bodies, the installation and construction work of the wind farm will commence.
The USD 1.49 billion (AUD 2 billion) worth project comprises 226 wind turbines across the site which is located between Gympie and Maryborough in the state pine forest in the Wide Bay-Burnett region.
The project will be developed by a consortium of CleanSight Pty Ltd and Siemens Financial Services, part of the German conglomerate Siemens AG known as “Forest Wind Holdings”. Mr. Cameron Dick, the minister for state development, manufacturing, infrastructure, and planning said that this project would be one of the largest wind farms in the southern hemisphere.
The installation work is expected to be commenced by the fourth quarter of 2020 and the project is slated to be completed by the end of 2023. When the project becomes operational, the installed capacity of Queensland will be increased by 9%, enough to power all the households in the Brisbane City Council area.
