Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Goldwind has agreed to acquire the 530MW Stockyard Hill Wind Farm from Origin Energy for A$110m ($81.6m).

The wind farm will be located in Victoria, Australia and as part of the deal, Origin Energy has agreed to purchase power produced from the wind farm until 2030, under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

Stockyard Hill wind farm will consists of 149 turbines, with each producing abut 3.55MW of electricity. The wind farm can produce enough energy to fulfil the needs of 400,000 Australian homes.

The acquisition of Stockyard Hill Wind Farm is subject to the satisfaction of certain regulatory approvals. The PPA will also be subject to the satisfaction of a number of conditions including Goldwind achieving financial close.

Goldwind will work with land owners and local community, as the construction on the wind power project is set to begin. In addition to arranging for project funding, it will deliver the project under an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract.

The company will also oversee the operations and maintenance of the project over a period of 25 years.

Goldwind chairman Wu Gang said: “Goldwind is delighted to have been selected by Origin Energy to deliver the Stockyard Hill Wind Farm and to supply renewable energy from the project to Origin until 2030. This project will make a material contribution to achieving Australia’s 2020 Renewable Energy Target.

“This is the largest wind power purchase agreement seen in Australia. Goldwind recognises the strong leadership being shown by Origin Energy in the transition to a lower carbon emissions energy sector, Goldwind is also committed to this transition.”

Origin CEO, Frank Calabria said: "Today's announcement is important as it indicates just how fast the transition is occurring in Australia’s energy market. Not only is renewable energy being rolled out rapidly, the costs have fallen at a very fast rate.

"Through our deal with Goldwind, Origin has been able to add a substantial amount of new renewable energy to our portfolio at a market leading PPA price, and as Stockyard Hill is in Victoria, this will help to cover a large portion of the load of the recently retired Hazelwood Power Station."

Image: Goldwind to acquire 530MW wind farm from Origin Energy. Photo: Courtesy of Steve Ralston/FreeImages.com.