General News
23 October, 2025
Are we getting our fair share from windfarms?
Financial benefits from windfarms?
Since state legislation changed in July this year, Queensland councils, like the SDRC, have far more say over the development of wind and solar developments and how those facilities benefit residents.
Is the SDRC getting their fair share of financial benefits from the leading renewable energy developer in the region, Acciona?
For Tenterfield Shire, the beneficial fallout from approved renewable energy developments are prescribed by state law. In fact, NSW is the only state to have mandatory benefit sharing contributions.
Chris Dorrough, a Warwick resident, retired developer and person with a keen interest in making sure the shire actually benefits from the new McIntyre and Herries wind farms spoke to the Town & Country Journal about the issue.
Whether or not you are a supporter or not of renewable energy developments in the region is not the question, Mr Dorrough says.
“I’m in t wo minds about wind farms and solar farms. They are coming here, the government is going to approve them because now we have no alternative anyway, if the government is going to approve them they should make some significant contribution to Warwick.”
For example, he says, Warwick doesn’t have particularly appealing “entry statements” for people driving into the shire, and not very impressive landscaping, two areas that funding from renewable developments could improve. Of course, Chris says, there are many ways extra funding could benefit the shire.
As a long-term developer, Mr Dorrough is familiar with the strategy of compelling developers to cough up extra funds as part of their approval process for the greater good of a community. He gives an illustration in general terms:
“As a developer if I produce a block of land, I have to contribute $21,500 to the council for signing off on that. The block of land is worth $200,0000 – sort of 10% of my development project. Therefore, it seems to me the same logic can be used with the windfarm people, they should contribute 10% of their project to the area.”
Mr Dorrough points out to the conflicting issues: inviting new business to the shire is critical for overall economic health and shouldn’t be discouraged by onerous fees.
“But the windfarm people, by their very nature, are different. They’re coming here and then selling their product all over Queensland. The rest of Queensland is benefiting.”
Councils are quickly catching on, and sources told the Town & Country Journal that the SDRC is actively looking into local guidelines similar to those of the Western Downs.
The Western Downs shire has introduced community benefit system policy which means that large-scale wind and solar farms, in order to lodge a valid development application, must execute a Community Benefit Agreement with the council.
The figures of extraction from the solar or wind farms generally mirrors what the NSW guidelines have in place.
The mandates in NSW are $1,050 per MW capacity per year for wind, and $850 per MW capacity per year for solar plus REZ access fees of $575 per MW capacity per quarter, of which $425 per MW per quarter is allocated to community benefit initiatives and $125 per MW per quarter is allocated to employment initiatives.
Mr Dorrough says the $2.5 million over a 10-year span donated to the SDRC through a small grant program is “nothing”.
“McIntyre, according to their figures, is a $1.96 billion project. The $2.5 million they deign to give us is almost insulting.”
The Town & Country Journal has not been able to yet confirm the dollar figure that either of the projects are contributing to the Southern Downs. Questions to Acciona went unanswered.
The Regional Australia Institute, an independent think-tank to empower Australia’s regional areas, is studying the move towards net zero targets and the impact on regional Australia.
“Many communities still share concerns about potential negative impacts from large-scale renewable energy projects in their regions”
In some cases, including in the Southern Downs, concerns have “swelled to opposition, threatening social license for renewable energy projects.”
Indeed, a Facebook site “Southern Downs Voice Against Pikedale Wind Factory” has contributed to a temporary halt of the project, located just 18 kilometres west of Stanthorpe.
Acciona, the Spanish multinational that is developing wind farms in the Southern Downs, “welcomes” improved community engagement in the renewable energy sector, it stated in a press release.
Acting COO David Bratby said that communities are “essential partners” and “deserve to be properly consulted and fairly compensated as part of the development of considered and area-appropriate renewable energy projects.”
Whatever the public sentiment, if the SDRC develops community benefit policies similar to other Queensland councils, renewable developers will be forced to agree to paying a base level contribution to the community.
