Canunda Wind Farm facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Canunda Wind Farm |
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Canunda wind farm at sunrise
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| Country | Australia |
| Location | Tantanoola, South Australia |
| Coordinates | 37°44′02″S 140°23′42″E / 37.734°S 140.395°E |
| Commission date | March 2005 |
| Construction cost | A$92.5 million |
| Owner(s) | GDF Suez Energy Australia 72%, Mitsui 28% |
The Canunda Wind Farm is a large project that uses wind to make electricity. It cost about $92.5 million to build. This wind farm is located in South Australia, near the towns of Millicent and Tantanoola. It sits on land that is also used for grazing animals.
The Canunda Wind Farm is owned by two companies: GDF Suez Energy Australia (which owns 72%) and Mitsui (which owns 28%).
Contents
What is the Canunda Wind Farm?
The Canunda Wind Farm is a big power station that uses wind energy. It can produce 46 megawatts (MW) of electricity. This is a lot of power! It's located about 16 kilometres south of Millicent in South Australia.
How Does It Work?
The wind farm has 23 giant wind turbines. These turbines are made by a company called Vestas. Each turbine has a tall tower that is 67 metres high. The blades on each turbine are 40 metres long. This means the very tip of a blade can reach 107 metres into the sky!
The blades spin at different speeds depending on how windy it is. They can spin between 9 and 19 rotations per minute (rpm). South Australia is a very windy place. This helps the Canunda Wind Farm make a lot of electricity. It has a high "capacity factor" of 34 percent. This means it's very good at using the wind to produce power compared to other wind farms around the world.
Powering Homes with Wind
The electricity made at Canunda Wind Farm is enough to power about 30,000 average homes in South Australia. The power travels through a 16-kilometre-long underground cable system. This cable takes the electricity from the wind farm to a power station nearby in Snuggery. The cable was carefully placed to avoid harming sensitive natural areas.
The Canunda Wind Farm helps the local area and the whole state. It makes clean electricity, which is good for the environment. It also helps the farms where it's located by providing extra income. Plus, it adds to South Australia's electricity supply, making sure there's enough power for everyone. Many people have been interested in visiting the wind farm to see how it works.
Building the Wind Farm
The Canunda Wind Farm officially opened on March 31, 2005. The person who opened it was Mike Rann, who was the Premier of South Australia at the time. The project was finished on time and within its budget.
A company called Wind Prospect helped the owners with the engineering during the building phase. Canunda Wind Farm was the very first wind farm built by International Power (which later became part of GDF Suez). It showed that the company was starting to use more types of energy in Australia.
