Waipipi Wind Farm

Resource consents for the Waipipi Wind Farm were secured in July 2017 for the construction and operation of the wind farm and transmission line. The project includes 31 commissioned wind turbines and support infrastructure including an on-site substation, access tracks, and during the construction period, included an on-site concrete batching plant.

The resource consent restricts the maximum wind turbine tip height to 160 metres AGL with the lowest point of the blades required to have a minimum ground clearance of 30 metres (i.e. maximum rotor size of 130 metres).

A copy of the resource consents can be downloaded below:

The Waipipi Wind Farm will produce enough clean energy each year to power about 65,000 homes and save the emission of roughly 250,000 tonnes of carbon.

The 800 hectare project envelope covers four properties, excluding those areas which have been identified as part of the Environmental Buffer Zone (EBZ). The formulation of the EBZ within the project site has been informed and refined in response to the various environmental assessments – particularly those relating to visual amenity, natural character, coastal hazards, noise, ecology, avifauna and heritage matters.

Tilt Renewables is committed to open and honest dialogue with all stakeholders, with an aim to build and enhance community acceptance and trust in all projects and in the renewable energy industry.

We welcome your feedback if you have any concerns or believe you can provide local insight into matters which we should address during the operations phase of the project.

Community Consultative Group

A community consultation group has been established with members of the community and representatives from Ngaa Rauru, South Taranaki District Council and the Department of Conservation. A first meeting was held on the 10th of July 2019 to introduce the project and members and discuss the role of the group. Further meeting will be scheduled as the project proceeds towards execution. This group will meet at least six monthly during the construction phase and over the first two years of the operation of the project.

The objective of the Consultative Group is to facilitate information flow between the Tilt Renewables’ management team and the community, and will be an on-going point of contact between Tilt Renewables and the community. The functions of the Consultative Group shall also include acting as a forum for relaying community concerns about the construction and on-going operation of the Waipipi Wind Farm to the Tilt Renewables’ on-site management team, developing acceptable means of addressing (where possible) and managing those concerns, and reviewing the implementation of measures to resolve and manage community concerns.

If you would like to express your interest in joining this group as a local resident representative please contact us by emailing: waipipiwindfarm@tiltrenewables.com.

We are committed to being an active part of the local community for the life of the wind farm.

With the wind farm now fully operational, Tilt Renewables is in the process of setting up and Community Fund, which will be managed by the community for initiatives deemed important for the community.

The fund will provide $25,000 per annum to be dedicated to initiatives as determined by the Waipipi Wind Farm Community Fund Committee. The committee will be set up with persons from the Waverley and Patea surrounding area.

Tilt Renewables is now seeking expressions of interest for persons who may be interested in becoming a member of the Waipipi Wind Farm Community Fund Committee.

An expression of interest form is available via this link, or a paper copy can be completed and emailed to waipipiwindfarm@tiltrenewables.com.

A wind farm brings many direct opportunities for employment to the region during both the construction phase and ongoing operations once the wind farm is commissioned.

Flow on employment benefits are also achieved as the project brings demand for local business services and consumer goods. Most regions have a range of businesses that will provide services to a wind farm project.

These include:

• Domestic scale electricians;
• Transport operators;
• Competent machine operators;
• General labourers;
• Quarries; and
• Concrete businesses.

Since the beginning of construction (October 2019) there have been over 310,000 hours of work completed onsite, the equivalent of over 150 full time employees working in the Waverley area during the construction phase. As the wind farm is now in its operations and maintenance phase, three full time Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy staff are onsite maintaining the turbines - roles that will be required for the life of the wind farm.

Anyone interested in supplying local services or gaining employment is encouraged to register their interest on the Goods and Services Register, by completing this form.

Newsletters are an important part of Tilt Renewables' community engagement and will increase in frequency as the Project develops.

Visit this page regularly to ensure you receive all updates related to the Waipipi Wind Farm. To subscribe to our newsletter mailing list, please click here.

For further information on the Waipipi Wind Farm please contact the project team at waipipiwindfarm@tiltrenewables.com or on 0800 WE TILT (938 458).

If you have a complaint, please contact us at complaints@tiltrenewables.com.

You can find Tilt Renewables' Complaints Handling Procedure here.

To register interest in providing goods or services for the Waipipi Wind Farm project please click here and complete the form or email us at waipipiwindfarm@tiltrenewables.com and we will add you to our Goods and Services Register.