Pen-y-Cymoedd farm, Wales' largest onshore wind farm has generated electricity for the first time last month and is on target for completion in April 2017. 

The £365m Pen-y-Cymoedd farm is being built between Neath and Aberdare by Swedish developers Vattenfall. The company said the breakthrough was "one of the biggest boosts this decade to delivering Wales' green energy targets".

The 250 megawatt, 76-turbine scheme is set for completion early in 2017. In a joint venture Jones Bros and Balfour Beatty delivered infrastructure for the project, Wales’ largest wind farm and bigger than any English project.

Lesley Griffiths, Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs, Welsh Government, said: “It’s great news that Wales’ largest onshore wind farm is now generating energy. Supporting the development of more renewable energy projects is a key priority for the Welsh Government and this marks progress towards our goal of reducing our greenhouse emissions by at least 80 per cent by 2050.”

Mike Pitcher, programme executive for the Energy Delivery Programme at Natural Resources Wales, said:

“The development at Pen y Cymoedd is an important step for renewable energy in Wales. In addition to giving a boost to the green energy sector, the work to restore extensive areas of peatland habitat and the development of new mountain bike trails shows how it’s possible to generate multiple benefits for people, nature and the economy when delivering renewable energy projects.”

The Welsh Government challenged the Welsh renewable electricity sector to generate 7,000GWh by 2020. Pen y Cymoedd will deliver 11 per cent of that target.

It is expected to produce enough power annually to meet the electricity demand of more than 188,000 UK households and will more than meet the domestic demand of host local authorities Rhondda Cynon Taf and Neath Port Talbot. Over the lifetime of the project, it is expected to save 6.4 million tonnes of CO2. See a birds eye view of the project.