CS Energy has announced the acquisition of the $1.3bn (A$1.96bn), 285MW Lotus Creek Wind Farm near St Lawrence in Queensland, Australia, from Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP).
The move is considered a major step in Queensland’s renewable energy sector, as it is the first 100% publicly owned wind farm to enter the construction phase under the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan.
The Lotus Creek Wind Farm has secured substantial financial backing, with $624.3m contributed by the Queensland Government’s Renewable Energy and Hydrogen Jobs Fund and an additional $300m sourced from coal royalties, as announced in the 2023–24 Budget.
The wind farm has received all necessary state and federal government approvals and is subject to best practice conditions including getting more than 4,500 hectares of land within the region to be enhanced and protected as part of the project’s environmental offset strategy.
CS Energy CEO Darren Busine said: “The Lotus Creek Wind Farm will support the growing demand for renewable energy from our large commercial and industrial customers, and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the region.
“The proximity of the Lotus Creek Wind Farm in the Central Queensland region makes it ideally located to provide reskilling opportunities for our employees. Once the project is operational, Vestas will service and maintain the wind turbines and CS Energy will carry out asset management on the balance of plant.
“CS Energy and Vestas are working collaboratively to develop potential pathways for CS Energy employees to carry out additional maintenance services in coming years.”
Danish company Vestas and Australia’s Zenviron have been hired for equipment supply and construction of the wind farm.
Vestas will supply and install 46 of its V162-6.2MW wind turbines, along with a long-term service agreement to ensure optimal energy production.
The delivery of the wind turbines is set to begin in the first quarter (Q1) of 2026, with commissioning expected in Q4 of the same year.
At the peak of construction, the Lotus Creek Wind Farm will employ up to 400 people on-site and create 10–15 long-term regional service roles once operational.
Clean energy generated by Lotus Creek Wind Farm is estimated to power around 150,000 average Queensland homes.
In September last year, Enfinity Global purchased a solar project portfolio in development, totalling 546MW in capacity, in Colorado, from CS Energy.
