The company building the new Waipipi Wind Farm near Waverley wants a long-standing relationship with South Taranaki people.
"We aren't just here for the 18 months' construction. We are here for 30 years-plus and we want to be an active member of the community," Tilt Renewables chief executive Deion Campbell said.
He was speaking to a group of about 85 at the formal sod turning for the Waipipi Wind Farm on November 1.
The farm has been planned for 10 years and got consent in July 2017. It will have 31 turbines, with a top blade height of 160m, and 14km of road will be built to service them.
The ceremony started at the marae of South Taranaki iwi Ngā Rauru, Te Wairoa Iti, in Waverley. Attendees travelled in two 45-seater buses to the wind farm site on the coast 8km from Waverley and 6km from Pātea.