Clarke Creek Wind Farm will produce enough electricity to power 330,000 homes
Clarke Creek Wind Farm is located 150km north-west of Rockhampton and 150km south of Mackay on the land of the Barada Kabalbara Yetimarala (BKY) peoples.
When completed, Squadron Energy’s wind farm will produce enough electricity to power 330,000 homes.
Stage One
- 100 wind turbines
- 450MW expected capacity
- due for completion in 2025.
Stage Two
- 94 wind turbines
- 564MW expected capacity
- currently in the advanced planning stage*.
Stage One of the wind farm has created more than 350 jobs during construction and injected $110 million into the regional economy.
Our customer
Squadron Energy is Australia’s leading renewable energy company that develops, operates and owns renewable energy assets in Australia. A 100% Australian owned company, Squadron Energy aims to improve the environment for current and future generations by leading Australia’s transition to renewable energy. They are experienced across the whole project lifecycle and have 1.1GW of renewable energy in operation and another 900MW under construction*.
The solution
For Stage One, we completed the EBoP design and construction including Yaw backup, Synchronous condenser civil construction and integration support and EPC across multiple sites:
Three 275/33kV substations were constructed at three sites:
- South 200MVA to power 39 wind turbines
- North 180MVA to power 23 wind turbines
- Central 200MVA to power 38 wind turbines
Over 26km of 33kV overhead powerlines were deployed via helicopter stringing:
- B line, 24 pole foundations
- C line, 16 pole foundations
- D line, 29 pole foundations
- E line, 24 pole foundations
- F line, 21 pole foundations
Over 22km of 275kV overhead powerlines were deployed via helicopter stringing:
- South line, 42 pole foundations
- North line, 21 pole foundations
- 13 stay supports
Diesel generator support across three sites:
- South, 160KVas
- North, 160KVa
- Central, 500KVa
Over 100km of 33kV underground powerlines were trenched and installed:
- Cable reticulation ✱
- Trenching operational activities included excavation, ditch witch, and blasting
- Installation of LV/MV cable was completed with backfill and testing operations
✱ Cable reticulation system is a method of underground power distribution. Scope involved the use of underground cables to distribute electricity from the Substations to the wind turbine network.
The outcome
In October 2024, the central substation successfully completed generation registration with the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), paving the way for starting grid testing and participation in the National Energy Market (NEM), and to begin generating and exporting renewable energy, with the first wind turbines starting to spin.
The mountainous terrain and vegetation provided incredible geographic, engineering and construction challenges, and opportunities to trial new and innovative construction technologies. The team utilised a combination of traditional construction methods, helicopter stringing, and new drone stringing techniques, as well as world first innovations like the first use of robotic spacer installations.
These new technologies represent a commitment to innovation and safety, and the learnings from this project will inform the wider use of these techniques on future Yurika projects, and across the wider electrical infrastructure industry.
As at November 2024, Stage One is due for completion in late 2025, with Stage Two in the advanced planning stage.
