- Australia
- Go to acciona.com
ACCIONA, a global leader in renewable energy and sustainable infrastructure, has today announced the launch of Turbine Made, Australia’s first initiative dedicated to exploring innovative ways to transform decommissioned wind turbine blades into new materials and products.
Melbourne, 11 February 2025.
ACCIONA, a global leader in renewable energy and sustainable infrastructure, has today announced the launch of Turbine Made, Australia’s first initiative dedicated to exploring innovative ways to transform decommissioned wind turbine blades into new materials and products.
ACCIONA has given new life to a decommissioned blade from the Waubra Wind Farm in Victoria by breaking it down into a versatile particulate that can serve as a raw material for sustainable product manufacturing. Via the Turbine Made initiative, ACCIONA is seeking Australian innovators to help explore groundbreaking applications for the material in the development of sustainable products.
The company has opened an 'Expressions of Interest' call on its website at https://www.acciona.com.au/turbine-made/ ACCIONA would then seek to meet with shortlisted teams or individuals behind selected ideas, to explore potential implementation and production.
The Turbine Made initiative builds on ACCIONA's previous work to repurpose decommissioned wind turbine blades, which has included a collaboration with European fashion brand El Ganso to create sneakers featuring recycled blade material in their soles, as well as the integration of recycled blade materials into the torsion beams of solar trackers at a solar plant in Extremadura, Spain. This latest iteration represents the next step in ACCIONA's efforts to advance the circular economy in renewable energy.
Caroline Pinter, General Brand and Marketing for ACCIONA Energía in Australia commented: “The blade material we have created could be used to create a vast range of products - everything from children’s playgrounds and koala crossings for highways, to flame-resistant clothing for firefighters, homes for butterflies and artificial reefs. The opportunities are endless, and we’re excited to see the creative concepts that will come from innovators across Australia who want to help us advance the circular economy within renewables.”
As of 2023, 31 wind farms totalling 599 turbines across Australia were more than 15 years old, meaning a growing number of blades will require replacing in the next 10-15 years (Clean Energy Council Winding Up Report, 2023).
SUSTAINABLE LEADERSHIP
ACCIONA has recently been recognised as one of the world’s 100 most sustainable companies by Corporate Knights, a leading media group specialising in sustainability rankings. This recognition underscores the company’s commitment to sustainable leadership. In Australia, this commitment was further highlighted in 2023 when ACCIONA was named the Australian Financial Review’s overall Sustainability Leader for Impact.
Furthermore, ACCIONA is already investing in end-of-life future turbine strategies through a blade recycling plant in Navarra, Spain, which is set to become operational in 2026, creating 100 jobs and a processing capacity of 6,000 tonnes of material per year. Currently 98% of ACCIONA Energía’s materials are recycled.