Nari Nari Tribal Council hopes stake in Wilan Wind Farm will help restore culture and country

In Nari Nari language “wilan” means wind, and the traditional owners of a vast property in south-western New South Wales hope to harness this natural resource to help care for country, culture and people.

The not-for-profit Nari Nari Tribal Council (NNTC) is the custodian of Gayini, an 88,000-hectare property between Hay and Balranald.

Nari Nari man and chairman Jamie Woods said the council saw the potential for large-scale renewable energy five years ago.

“It’s using natural wind and solar to produce its outcomes and that product is never going to leave this landscape — we know it’s long-term and sustainable” he said.

A man wearing a black cap standing infront of a creek — Nari Nari land manager Jamie Woods says the project puts ownership in the community’s hands. (ABC News: Greg Bigelow)

The NNTC is working with Kilara Energy and Infrastructure Solutions and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) on plans for a 74-turbine wind farm, capable of 530 megawatts of energy generation — enough to power 320,000 households.

If the Wilan Wind Farm project goes ahead, it will be part of the South West Renewable Energy Zone and feed into the national grid.

Mr Woods said a core part of the negotiations was a desire for the NNTC to share in the wealth.

“It was a vision from the uncles and aunts that they wanted to have ownership in any economic opportunities that were going to happen on country, on our own land,” he said.

“It makes us independent, and that’s what we’ve strived to do for many moons.”

a map with green lines marking the proposed wind farm — Map showing location of the proposed Wilan Wind Farm. (Supplied by: Kilara Energy & Infrastructure Solutions)

If the project goes ahead, the NNTC will be rewarded for hosting turbines in the same way that other landholders are paid.

The NNTC has also secured milestone payments, a seat on the project steering committee, and the option to invest up to $10 million of its own money to be an equity shareholder.

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First Nations engagement

Kilara Energy chief executive Andrew Thomson said the model of engagement with the NNTC, which included decision making and ownership, was unprecedented in Australia.

“It’s a new benchmark for incorporating genuine, deep, lasting First Nations participation in our energy transition in Australia,” he said.

“The Nari Nari bring a whole lot of skills capabilities with respect to cultural heritage management, environment, community engagement and strategic advisory work.”

Mr Thomson said the proposed turbines would be 30 kilometers away from the wetlands on Gayini.

Andrew Thomson Kilar — Andrew Thomson says the Wilan Wind Farm project is a model for First Nation’s engagement. (Supplied by: Kilara Energy Australia)

“We’ve worked very closely with the Nari Nari, the University of New South Wales, and our own advisors, to ensure that the project site is well away from those important habitats and that it’s able to work alongside the important natural characteristics of the landscape,” he said.

“The project will also have a broader community benefit fund, which will contribute up to $30 million during the life of the project, 20 per cent of which will be dedicated towards First Nations initiatives.

“We still have far too many marginalized Indigenous communities and in my view, the industry has an opportunity to help address disadvantage and help drive self-determination.”

Push for First Nations participation

The federal government is developing a First Nations Clean Energy Strategy to improve policy and identify areas for future investment.

The First Nations Clean Energy Network’s Karina Nolan hopes it will better resource Indigenous communities.

“Not just to respond to proponents asking to put large-scale projects on our lands or on our waters, but actually making sure that our communities and traditional owners are proponents ourselves and running businesses,” she said.

Ms Nolan said about 1 per cent of renewable energy projects in Australia had Indigenous ownership, compared to 20 per cent in Canada where there were Indigenous loan facilities and incentives for projects that had an equity component for First Nations groups.

“We’ve got some work to do to lift the aspirations of our mob about what’s possible from renewables, but also in what we’re asking industry and government (to do) to back us in,” she said.

A man wearing a black jacket standing on a creek bank — Jamie Woods says the vision is to be able to heal country and people at Gayini. (ABC News: Greg Bigelow)

Mr Woods said involvement in the wind farm project had also built project development skills and the capacity within the NNTC.

“Showing us how to do it properly, that sharing of knowledge and that expertise in a small Aboriginal organization is massive,” he said.

Mr Woods said income from the project would fast-track conservation on Gayini, along with training and social development programs for Indigenous people.

In a statement, federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said the government intended to enable First Nations participation in the sector.

“We are rebuilding Australia’s energy system, and this transformation is an opportunity to work with First Nations communities to build engagement, equity and ownership, so that we move from managing welfare to managing wealth,” the statement said.