Turbine Made: ACCIONA and DDB Melbourne ride the next wave of sustainability

Renewable energy company ACCIONA has teamed up with DDB Melbourne and professional surfer Josh Kerr to create the world’s first surfboards made from recycled wind turbine blades, marking the launch of Turbine Made - a sustainability initiative to repurpose retired wind turbine materials into new products.

The Turbine Made surfboard, developed using strips of decommissioned turbine blades, was tested at ACCIONA’s Cathedral Rocks Wind Farm before making its public debut at an event at URBNSURF in Sydney last week.

The surfboards are the first in a series of sustainable innovations under Turbine Made, which aims to help businesses incorporate repurposed turbine materials into their products.

Caroline Pinter, ACCIONA's general manager of brand and marketing, said the initiative aims to highlight the company’s commitment to the circular economy and its long association to the surfing community.

“At our first wind farm in Navarra, Spain, local surfboard shapers helped repair turbine blades because of their expertise in fiberglass. This surfboard continues that shared history and reinforces our commitment to making the circular economy a reality.”

The collaboration also reflects shifting attitudes toward sustainability in consumer goods and advertising.

Giles Watson, executive creative director at DDB Group Melbourne, said the campaign to support the new initiative was designed to resonate with environmentally conscious consumers while reinforcing performance-driven innovation.

“Surfers have an unbreakable bond with the environment, so creating a board from recycled turbine blades helps inspire the next generation of environmentalists,” Watson said. “Beyond being bloody cool, this project proves that sustainability and performance can go hand in hand - opening the door for a wave of new possibilities with Turbine Made.”

Josh Kerr, the founder of Draft Surf, has partnered with ACCIONA and features in a stunning back and white film to introduce the first surfboard made from retired wind turbine blades. The film was shot at Cathedral Rocks Wind Farm, a 50-50 joint venture between ACCIONA and EnergyAustralia.

“The conditions at Cathedral Rocks pushed the surfboards to their limits and they held up beautifully,” Kerr said. “The Turbine Made particulate is extremely durable and lightweight, making it ideal to use in our performance surfboards.”

From surfboards to sneakers

The surfboard project is the latest in ACCIONA’s broader efforts to repurpose decommissioned wind turbines. The company has already worked with European fashion brand El Ganso to integrate recycled blade material into sneaker soles and has used turbine components in solar tracker beams at renewable energy projects.

ACCIONA is also developing a blade recycling plant in Navarra, Spain, set to become operational in 2026, with the capacity to process 6,000 tonnes of turbine material annually.

Mariola Domenech, global sustainability director at ACCIONA Energía, said now is the time to rethink how wind energy infrastructure is managed at the end of its lifecycle.

“We know that in the next 10 to 15 years countries like Australia will have a large volume of decommissioned wind turbine blades, so we’re acting now to explore new ways to recycle and reuse the material they are built from.”