Hepburn Wind Project
Corporate brand
UnclaimedAustralia's first community-owned wind farm.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The Hepburn Wind Project is a community-owned wind farm at Leonards Hill in Hepburn Shire, Victoria, approximately 10 kilometres south of Daylesford and Hepburn Springs. It was developed through local investment and cooperative ownership, making it a notable Australian example of community participation in renewable-energy infrastructure. The project emerged from concerns among local residents that government policy and investment were not moving quickly enough to address climate change. Rather than treating renewable generation solely as a utility-scale corporate development, the initiative sought to give residents a direct financial and governance stake in a local wind facility. The wind farm consists of two REpower System AG turbines, each rated at 2.05 megawatts, for a combined installed capacity of 4.1 megawatts. When wind conditions permit, the project was projected to generate enough electricity for approximately 2,300 households, broadly comparable with the number of homes in the Daylesford and Hepburn Springs twin-town area. Its output is supplied to the local electricity network, linking a locally financed generation asset with the broader Victorian electricity system. Hepburn Wind formally launched its community share offer on 25 July 2008. Local residents of Daylesford and Hepburn Springs received priority in the share allocation, reinforcing the project's community-benefit model. By June 2011, more than 1,700 members had subscribed approximately A$9.0 million. The project had secured more than A$13.1 million in total funding, with the balance coming from bank debt and government grants. These figures describe the financing stage reported in the project's reference material and should not be interpreted as current valuation, revenue, or operating performance. The planning process was conducted under local planning arrangements because the proposed facility was below 30 megawatts. Hepburn Shire Council issued a planning permit in February 2007 after receiving 325 submissions supporting the proposal and 18 objections. A subsequent challenge at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal was unsuccessful in June 2007. The project therefore combined local democratic participation with the formal planning and permitting requirements applied to wind generation in Victoria. Construction followed a turnkey contract signed with REpower Systems on 28 April 2010. A ground-breaking ceremony took place on 8 October 2010, and construction began the following month. The turbines were shipped from Germany in December 2010 and arrived in Melbourne in February 2011. Community members marked the installation of the first turbine with a picnic on 19 April 2011. The wind farm began generating electricity into the local network on 22 June 2011. Hepburn Wind is significant not only for its physical generation capacity but also for its ownership and participation model. Community wind farms were already established in countries such as Denmark and Germany and were emerging in Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Hepburn became an Australian reference point for locally financed renewable energy, demonstrating how residents could organize investment, obtain planning approval, coordinate construction, and operate a shared generation project. Its positioning is therefore based on community ownership, local renewable generation, climate-action participation, and regional economic engagement rather than on a consumer-facing electricity brand or a broad portfolio of utility products.
History
The Hepburn Wind Project developed from local concern about climate change and dissatisfaction with the pace of government action on renewable energy. The initiative was the first project associated with the Hepburn Renewable Energy Association, an organization later known as SHARE. Its structure was designed to make local residents participants and investors in a renewable-energy asset rather than simply nearby observers of a commercial development. Hepburn Shire Council issued the project's planning permit in February 2007. Because the proposed facility had a capacity below 30 megawatts, it was assessed through local planning arrangements administered by the council. The application attracted 325 submissions in support and 18 objections. The permit was challenged before the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, but the challenge failed in June 2007, allowing the development process to continue. Hepburn Wind formally launched its share offer on 25 July 2008. Shares were offered with priority to residents of Daylesford and Hepburn Springs, embedding a geographic community-benefit principle into the ownership model. By June 2011, more than 1,700 members had subscribed approximately A$9.0 million. Total project funding exceeded A$13.1 million, with bank borrowing and government grants supplementing member equity. On 28 April 2010, Hepburn Wind signed a turnkey construction contract with REpower Systems. The official ground-breaking ceremony was held on 8 October 2010 and was officiated by Gavin Jennings, then Victoria's Minister for the Environment. Physical construction began in November. The two turbines, manufactured and supplied by REpower System AG, departed Germany aboard the SE Panthea on 5 December 2010 and reached Melbourne on 22 February 2011. The first turbine's erection was marked by a community picnic on 19 April 2011. The project began feeding electricity into the local network on 22 June 2011. Its two turbines each have a rated capacity of 2.05 megawatts, giving the project a combined capacity of 4.1 megawatts and a projected ability to serve roughly 2,300 households when wind conditions are favorable. The project became an important Australian example of community wind development. Similar ownership and participation models had a longer history in Denmark and Germany and were also emerging in several other countries. Hepburn's importance lies in showing how local residents could combine cooperative organization, share investment, planning participation, debt, grants, and specialist turbine construction to create a functioning renewable-energy facility. The available reference material does not establish later ownership changes, current generation figures, or a comprehensive list of subsequent executives and commercial results.
- 2011
First turbine celebrated by the community
[1]Residents gathered for a community picnic on 19 April to mark erection of the first turbine.
- 2011
Power generation begins
[1]The wind farm began generating electricity into the local network on 22 June.
- 2010
Turnkey construction contract signed
[1]Hepburn Wind contracted REpower Systems to deliver the wind farm on a turnkey basis on 28 April.
- 2010
Ground-breaking ceremony held
[1]The official ground-breaking ceremony took place on 8 October, followed by construction in November.
- 2008
Community share offer launched
[1]Hepburn Wind formally opened its community share offer on 25 July.
- 2007
Planning permit issued
[1]Hepburn Shire Council issued a planning permit for the sub-30-megawatt wind project in February after substantial community support and some objections.
- 2007
VCAT challenge unsuccessful
[1]A challenge to the planning permit was rejected by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal in June.
Products and positioning
Community-owned renewable-energy infrastructure with local investment, cooperative participation, and wind-powered electricity generation.
Wind power generation · 2011
Leonards Hill wind farm
The project's principal asset is a two-turbine wind farm at Leonards Hill in Hepburn Shire. Each REpower System AG turbine has a rated capacity of 2.05 megawatts, producing a combined installed capacity of 4.1 megawatts. Electricity is delivered to the local network, with the project originally projected to generate enough power for approximately 2,300 households when wind conditions allow.
Renewable-energy cooperative investment · 2008
Community investment shares
Hepburn Wind's share offer enabled residents and other community members to contribute equity to the project. Local residents of Daylesford and Hepburn Springs received priority, making the investment structure part of the project's community-ownership proposition rather than a conventional retail electricity product.
Marketing campaigns
- 2011Community turbine erection picnic
Hepburn Shire · Victoria · Australia
A community picnic on 19 April marked the erection of the first turbine and publicly celebrated progress on the locally owned project.
Outcome. The event reinforced the project's participatory and community-ownership identity before commercial generation began.
- 2008Hepburn Wind community share offer
Hepburn Shire · Victoria · Australia
The project invited community members to invest through a formally launched share offer, with priority for residents of Daylesford and Hepburn Springs.
Outcome. By June 2011, more than 1,700 members had subscribed approximately A$9.0 million.
Brand decisions
2010
Select REpower Systems for turnkey deliveryOtherBackground
After planning approval and community financing, the project required an experienced turbine supplier and construction contractor.
Action taken
Hepburn Wind signed a turnkey construction contract with REpower Systems on 28 April.
Aftermath
Construction began in November 2010 and the two turbines were installed and commissioned the following year.
2008
Adopt a community-share financing modelStrategyBackground
The project was intended to give local residents a direct stake in renewable generation and to respond to concerns about insufficient action on climate change.
Action taken
Hepburn Wind launched a public share offer, prioritizing residents in the nearby Daylesford and Hepburn Springs communities.
Aftermath
The offer attracted more than 1,700 members and approximately A$9.0 million in subscriptions by June 2011.
Community share subscriptions. A$9.0 million subscribed (By June 2011)
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