PREPARATIONS are on track to dismantle the Kooragang Island wind turbine on Wednesday morning.
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Crews working for the turbine’s new owner, Blowing in the Wind, spent Monday decommissioning the 73-metre high structure, including removing ladders and cables. The work will continue on Tuesday.
‘‘The more time you spend preparing these things the easier and safer it is to dismantle them,’’ Blowing in the Wind owner Robert Nichols said.
‘‘Once you get them prepared there are only a few large components that need to be pulled apart.’’
A special crane will be used to remove the blades, followed by the hub and the shaft on Wednesday.
‘‘Fingers crossed it all goes to plan,’’ Mr Nichols said. ‘‘The hire of the crane represents a significant part of the removal cost.’’
The turbine, which was installed in 1998, will be moved to Sassafras in northern Tasmania where it will be used to power a poultry farm.
The Vestas V44-600KW turbine was one of the first commercial wind generation projects in Australia to become an accredited GreenPower project.
Its former owner, Ausgrid, announced last year that it was giving up the turbine because its operation was no longer part of its core business.
