A groundbreaking sustainability project led by ACCIONA Energía has partnered with Newcastle-born surf brand Bolero Surf to create the world’s first commercial surfboard fins made from recycled wind turbine blades.
It’s a major milestone for the circular economy, and it started with a 26-year-old Novocastrian innovator.
Entrepreneur Banjo Hunt, who founded Bolero Surf in Newcastle, engineered the fins using decommissioned blades from the Waubra Wind Farm.
By repurposing the fibreglass core of old turbines, the process removes the most costly and labour-intensive part of traditional fin manufacturing, allowing high-quality fin production to return to Australia. The material’s strength and stiffness also make it ideal for high-performance surfing.
The fins made their competitive debut on the weekend, tested by pro surfer Darcy Crump at the Aussie Boardriders Battle on the Gold Coast. Crump reported fast, solid performance through the turns, proving the sustainable design can hold its own under elite conditions.
This release marks the first commercial product from ACCIONA’s Turbine Made initiative, launched last year to explore new uses for retired turbine blades.
After successfully prototyping a surfboard in 2025, the new fins show the concept can scale into retail manufacturing, opening the door for a wave of Australian-made circular surf products.
ACCIONA says the project is a live case study for what is possible when end-of-life materials are treated as the beginning of their next chapter. For designers, manufacturers and innovators across the country, the fins demonstrate that renewable-driven circular systems aren’t a far-off ambition — they’re already happening.
The Turbine Made fins from Bolero Surf are now available for purchase via bolerosurf.com.
