Plans for Southern Hemisphere's biggest windfarm revealed  

The Warrnambool Standard has an article on a large new wind farm that may be built in Victoria - Plans for Southern Hemisphere's biggest windfarm revealed.

A NEW player in the south-west wind energy market is preparing to launch a major project near Penshurst.

Res Australia has confirmed its interest in building turbines on farmland near the small community, with executives to meet local residents in the next eight weeks.

The Department of Primary Industries website lists the farm as capable of generating up to 625 megawatts of electricity, allowing it to support more than 350,000 homes. It would dwarf an $800 million, 365-megawatt development to be built near Macarthur and create hundreds of jobs in a region embracing renewable energy opportunities.

Test towers have been installed on district properties to establish the strength and consistency of wind for power generation as further preparatory work continues.

Res Australia developer Simon Kerrison said the company hoped to progress its plans within nine months. "We're still in the early stages; we're doing initial studies and surveys just to make sure the project is viable in the area," he said. While unable to confirm the farm's likely output, Mr Kerrison said Res had deemed early results strong enough to warrant closer investigation.

A 625-megawatt wind farm would be among the largest in the world, joining massive operations in the US and Romania.