Cost of NSW Renewable Zone Blows Out to $5.5 Billion Before Single Watt of Power Is Generated

Expected to produce an extra 4.5 gigawatts, the Central West Orana renewable energy zone will now cost New South Wales energy consumers $5.5 billion.

A flock of sheep graze near wind turbines at sunrise in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales on July 28, 2025. Saeed Khan/AFP via Getty Images

The first renewable energy zone (REZ) announced by the New South Wales government will now cost the state’s energy consumers $5.5 billion, rather than the $650 million initially estimated in 2021.

The troubled Central-West Orana (CWO) REZ covers approximately 20,000 square kilometres in central NSW, centred on Dubbo and Dunedoo.

What’s the Zone Planned For?

It was the first zone to be developed under the NSW government’s “Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap,” and is planned to initially deliver 4.5 gigawatts (GW) to 10 projects that secured access rights earlier this year.