80,000 Aussies say goodbye to fossil fuels with a new south Australian wind farm

Engie Australia has begun the pre-construction work of the 119 MW Willogoleche wind farm near Hallett in South Australia.

The $AUD 250 million project, to be built on Willogoleche Hill about 160 km north of Adelaide and 5 km west of the Hallett township, it will comprise of 32 turbines that each produce between 3.4 MW and 3.8 MW of power.

Matthew Donaldson, Engie chief executive officer says, "Preliminary works have begun onsite, including the installation of an adjacent substation to feed into the national electricity market.

"Once operational, the Willogoleche wind farm will produce enough electricity to power about 80,000 homes in South Australia.

"The Willogoleche wind farm contributes to Engie's global commitment to increase its share in renewable energy and provides further energy security for South Australia and the NEM.

Installation of the turbines is scheduled to start by the end of the year, with completion foreseen by mid-2018.

The project is underpinned by a power purchase agreement to support Engie in Australia's retail business Simply Energy.

Simply Energy has more than 80,000 customer accounts in South Australia.

Engie promises it is committed to taking on the major challenges of the energy revolution, towards a world more decarbonised, decentralised and digitised.

The group aims at becoming the leader of this new energy world by focussing on low carbon generation, energy infrastructure and efficient solutions adapted to suit client needs.

In Australia, the company produces about 2,000 MW of energy through a combination of renewable, gas-fired and brown coal-fired plants located in South Australia and Western Australia.

Simply Energy has more than 620,000 customer accounts across the country.

Engie is active in around 70 countries, employs 150,000 people worldwide and achieved revenues of $105 billion in 2016.

Engie is a French multinational electric utility company, headquartered in La Défense.

Engie is a pioneer in nuclear energy in Europe with the development of the first pressurised water reactor built in Belgium.

As a nuclear operator, Engie owns and operates seven reactors in Belgium through Electrabel, as well as owns stakes in the Chooz and Tricastin plants in France.