Windfarms

WINDFARM TOURIST DRIVE

While in Millicent take time out to enjoy, experience 'clean & green', the best of what the region has to offer. Travel down Lossie Road, through the lush farmlands, and turn left at Canunda Frontage Road. Experience the peace and beauty of the natural environment, the bird life and native animals in their habitats, take in the Canunda National Park, Lake Bonney South Australia's largest fresh water lake and the agricultural pursuits that are undertaken on the undulating pastures. Look up to the higher ground of the Woakwine Range and gaze in awe at the mighty wind turbines that stretch as far as the eye can see embracing the "Clean and Green" experience. Motor on into Tantanoola the home of the famous Tantanoola Tiger displayed in the Tantanoola Hotel, and then take time out to step down into one of South Australia's most beautiful caves, the Tantanoola Caves. Make your way back to Millicent along the Princes Highway and discover more about what Millicent -the heart of the Limestone Coast- has to offer.

Canunda National Park

South Australia's second largest coastal park stretches from Southend to Carpenter Rocks along South Australia's Limestone Coast. Entrance to the park on this tour is from Oil Rig Square, however as you turn down Canunda Frontage Road you can enjoy the vista of this famous National Park which forms the backdrop to the Windfarm drive.

Lake Bonney

South Australia's largest fresh water lake stretches along part of this drive. Abutting the Lake and this drive is the 2,450 acre property, Canunda Dairies with 1700 milking cows and a 1000 heifer replacement stock. Two rotary dairies are used to milk the cows and over a thousand acres are irrigated with 5 centre pivots.

Tantanoola Tiger

View the famous Tantanoola Tiger on display at the hotel in the small rural township of Tantanoola. Strange stories of the Tasmania Tiger circulated in the district from 1883 through to 1895 when it was shot dead and found to be an Assyrian Wolf. Take time out to enjoy a meal or listen to the tales of the tiger and then journey down the road to explore the Tantanoola Caves.

Tantanoola Caves

One of South Australia's most beautiful caves, filled with a spectacular array of formations in one large single chamber dolomite cave. It's an easy short walk and ramped walkways allow wheel chair access. Daily tours 10:00am - 3:00pm (except Christmas day). After marvelling at the beauty of the caves take a walk to the cliff top and enjoy the panoramic views of surrounding forests, volcanoes, windfarms and coastal sand dunes.

Millicent Visitor Information Centre

Turn right and travel along the Princes Highway into Millicent passing through the picturesque pine forests, the Tantanoola Dairy Farm and Kimberley Clark the largest single site employer in the region, producing tissue and paper products. Call at the Millicent Visitor Information Centre, the entrance to the award winning living History Museum and view the wide arrange of souvenirs and local art and crafts, along with visitor information and a wide array of brochures.

WOAKWINE RANGE WIND FARMS

Dozens of giant turbines dominate the Woakwine Range skyline and currently comprises the largest wind-farm development in the Southern Hemisphere. When fully operational, the 129+ spectacular wind turbines in the Canunda and Lake Bonney Wind Farm developments, will generate almost 300 Megawatts (MW) of electricity which represents the equivalent of one eighth of South Australia's energy needs. The project cost is $546 million, with each wind turbine costing around $4.2 million.

The Babcock and Brown Lake Bonney Wind Farm development was the first wind farm development in Wattle Range and a rated capacity of 240 MW's making the Lake Bonney Windfarm one of the worlds largest windfarms. The 240 MW's produced in strong winds equates to approximately one eighth of the State of South Australia's total electricity demand or equates to approximately one sixteenth of the States total electricity demand during an extreme hot summers day. The wind turbine's blades span 33 metres and are 100 metres above the ground, weighing some 6 tonne with the total weight of the wind turbine being 23 tonnes (rotor being the 3 blades and central hub) One windmill generates enough power for 1,100 homes.

Work on the Lake Bonney Windfarm commenced in 1989, when windfarm developer Paul Hutchinson brought a team of three overseas consultants to assess the Lake Bonney site. Development approval was granted in June 1999 by Wattle Range Council, and in September 2004 the wind farm was commissioned with 46 x 1.75 megawatt wind turbines being operational. All electricity from the windmills are connected by underground 33,000 volt electricity cable to the $10.5 million wind farm electric sub station, where the voltage is stepped up to 132,000 volts then transmitted into the Snuggery sub station and then the National Grid. Stage two will see a further 60 wind turbines being built and Babcock and Brown will be the largest single power operator in the State.

The Canunda Wind Farm at Lake Bonney, Wattle Range's second wind farm development represents a diversification of International Power's energy business in Australia and demonstrates its commitment to blending non-renewable power with firm (fossil-fired) power. The Canunda Wind Farm consisting of 23 two megawatt wind turbines, with each blade span measuring 39 metres, and are the largest installed in Australia was commissioned in 2005. The farm spans an area 8km long by 3km wide and is linked to the ETSA distribution network at the Snuggery Substation by a 14km 33,000 volt transmission line. Annually the wind farm will produce 46 megawatts and would power 30,000 homes and have a Green house Gas saving of 140,000 tonnes of CO₂.

Experience 'Clean and Green' Living with the

Canunda and Lake Bonney Windfarms.

https://www.infigenenergy.com/our-assets/owned-renewable-energy-assets/lake-bonney/

Two of our newest and largest industries in our area are the enviromenmetally friendly Lake Bonney and Canunda Windfarms

Windfarm framed Windmill at Sunset Windfarm Full View