Golden Plains Wind Farm to help accelerate grid decarbonisation
Australia's largest wind farm powers ahead
The CEFC commitment of up to $350 million to Golden Plains Wind Farm in Victoria crowds in investment from commercial banks to fast track the construction of what will be Australia's largest wind farm.
$350m
CEFC commitment
1333 MW
capacity
750,000
homes
We need to act urgently to reduce emissions. Golden Plains Stage Two will help do that by contributing 577MW to Australia’s renewable capacity while supporting the Australian Government to achieve its renewable electricity targets and help the world reach net-zero carbon emissions sooner.Andrew RiggsManaging Partner, TagEnergy
Our investment
The CEFC has committed a total of up to $350 million to develop the 1333 MW Golden Plains Wind Farm which is being constructed in two stages.
The CEFC committed $222.5 million in debt finance to the 756 MW Stage One of the wind farm, known as Golden Plains Wind Farm East, alongside Westpac, Bank of China, Mizuho, German state-owned investment bank KfW, Commonwealth Bank, and Danish Credit Export Agency EKF.
The financing attracted global recognition. It was named Asia Pacific Renewables Deal of the Year in the 2022 Project Finance International Awards, which recognise excellence and innovation in project finance transactions around the world and was named among the Global Trade Review Best Deals 2023.
The CEFC extended its commitment in 2024 with $127.5 million to the 577 MW Stage Two, known as Golden Plains Wind Farm West, alongside Westpac, Denmark’s credit export agency EIFO, Mizuho Bank, Bank of China, Deutsche Bank, Natixis and Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
our impact
Closing the gap
Some 6 GW of new large-scale generation is required each year for Australia to reach its targeted 82 per cent renewable energy in the National Electricity Market by 2030.
Golden Plains Wind Farm, near Geelong in Victoria, is a key asset in Australia’s race to decarbonise the electricity grid and is expected to replace energy supply that will be lost when Yallourn Coal fired power station retires in 2028.
TagEnergy estimates that when both stages are complete the 1,333 MW Golden Plains Wind Farm will generate enough clean energy to power more than 750,000 homes, the equivalent of every home in regional Victoria.
Financial bridge accelerates construction
Golden Plains Wind Farm is the first fully merchant wind farm in Australia to be financed by commercial lenders. Through offering a financial bridge between development and contracting, the CEFC is helping fast track the construction of vital assets that can make a meaningful contribution to Australia’s emissions reduction.
In a further demonstration of the success of our innovative ‘bridge to contract’ finance, CEFC capital will enable construction to begin before Stage Two secures power purchase agreements, ensuring faster deployment of clean, green power to Victorian consumers. This strategy helped fast track construction of Stage One, which has subsequently contracted 60 per cent of its energy.Ian LearmonthCEO, CEFC
Major industry players sign up
Snowy Hydro signed an offtake agreement in August 2023 to take 40 per cent of the large-scale generation certificates (LGCs) produced by Stage One and digital infrastructure company Equinix agreed in February 2024 to take 20 per cent.
Global furniture giant Ikea has stated that its investment arm Ingka Investments plans to take a 15 per cent stake in Stage One as part of Ikea’s plan to become carbon positive by 2030.
Project developer TagEnergy is continuing to negotiate further power purchase agreements as part of its strategy of progressively contracting the project’s energy production during construction and operation.
Engaging local communities
Community engagement measures at Stage One already include a TagEnergy community fund that provides free green electricity to local residents living within three kilometres of a turbine, and engagement with First Nations peoples to develop Indigenous training scholarships. This program will be extended as part of Stage Two, delivering additional money into the local community.
Keeping tabs on embodied carbon
In a landmark approach, TagEnergy will undertake extensive investigation of the carbon footprint at the site and publish the embodied carbon calculations from the construction of Stage Two.
