Federal clean energy funding supports new wind and solar projects across the Grampians region

Three new renewable energy projects in the Grampians and Central Highlands regions of Victoria have received Capacity Investment Scheme support from the federal government, enabling a combined 780 megawatts of new wind and solar generation that will make the region one of Australia's most significant clean energy production areas.

The projects — a 350-megawatt wind farm near Beaufort, a 280-megawatt solar farm north of Ararat, and a 150-megawatt wind farm near Dunkeld — received a combined $280 million in CIS revenue underwriting over 10 years, de-risking the projects sufficiently to allow their developers to secure private financing and proceed to construction.

Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said the Grampians region's wind and solar resource was among the best in Australia, and the CIS was unlocking investment that the market would eventually have made anyway but was making happen now at the scale and pace required to meet Australia's 2030 renewable targets. "These projects mean lower power prices, lower emissions, and local jobs in the regions that host them," he said.

The three projects are expected to create a combined 1,200 construction jobs and approximately 80 permanent operations and maintenance positions. Ballarat-based contractors have been invited to tender for civil works, with the lead developers having committed to local content targets of 30 per cent by contract value.

Community benefit sharing arrangements embedded in the project approvals will direct approximately $4.5 million annually to community funds in the host councils, providing a tangible local return from the wind and solar resources being harnessed.

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