Have you ever wanted to own a stake in a major infrastructure development?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Renewables company Squadron Energy is giving residents within the Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone an opportunity to own a stake in a wind farm.
"We're thrilled to offer residents in the Central-West Orana region the opportunity to participate in and reap the rewards of investing in Australia's transition to renewable energy," Squadron Energy chairman Jason Willoughby said.
"The program is designed to create benefits for the community and the environment, and we look forward to working with local investors to create a cleaner and more sustainable future for the country."
Squadron Energy is currently working on two wind farm projects in the region which residents will be able to invest in.
Earlier in 2024, they began construction on the 69-turbine Uungula Wind Farm, 14 kilometres east of Wellington.
The project is expected to create over 250 construction jobs and 12 ongoing roles. When complete, it could power over 200,000 homes.
"Once fully operational, this wind farm will prevent more than 560,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually, playing an important role in mitigating climate change," Mr Willoughby said.
"One of the real benefits of a wind project like this is that the ancillary infrastructure gets upgraded. We'll be doing a really significant upgrade to the Goolma Road intersection to remove some of the current safety issues.
"We'll also be upgrading that 12-mile road access... Not just access to the wind farm, but for local communities to have safer and better roads."
Also proposed is the Spicers Creek Wind Farm, west of Gulgong, which could have up to 117 wind turbines and a battery energy storage system. When complete it could power over 395,000 homes.
During construction it is expected to create more than 330 jobs and inject $46.9 million into the regional economy.
The minimum investment that can be made in the projects is $1000 and for residents living within eight kilometres of either development, Squadron Energy says they will match investments up to $2000.
To make the scheme possible Squadron Energy has partnered with online retail investment platform DomaCom.
It follows the success of the DomaCom Sapphire Wind Farm Community investment fund, which was the first commercial wind farm to open for public investment in Australia.
"We are pleased to be working with Squadron Energy to provide this exciting and unique opportunity to investors in the community to invest in the Central-West Orana Community Investment Fund," DomaCom chairman John Hewson said.
"The agreement is yet another example of how the DomaCom Fund provides retail investors with opportunities to take up small stakes in larger scale investments, including those in the sought after renewable energy infrastructure space."