The Federal Government has granted 12 feasibility licences for offshore wind projects off East Gippsland’s coast.
These licence holders are:
– High Sea Wind Pty Ltd
– Gippsland Skies Pty Ltd
– Blue Mackerel North Pty Ltd
– Kut-Wut Brataualung Pty Ltd, and
– Ørsted Offshore Australia 1 Pty Ltd (Gippsland 01)
– Star of the South Wind Farm Pty Ltd (SOTS)
– Iberdrola Australia OW 2 Pty Ltd (Aurora Green)
– Greater Gippsland 2 OWP Project Pty Ltd (Gippsland Dawn)
– Navigator North Project Pty Ltd
– Ørsted Offshore Australia 1 Pty Ltd (Gippsland 02)
– Kent Offshore Wind Pty Ltd, and
– Great Eastern Offshore Wind Farm Project Co Pty Ltd
The feasibility licence application process was highly competitive with 37 applications received.
BlueFloat Energy, the proponent of Gippsland Dawn, has been active in Gippsland since 2021 and believes the project could be operational by 2031.
Gippsland Dawn is proposed to be located between Paradise Beach and Ocean Grange and has capacity to generate up to 2.1 GW of electricity – enough to power more than one million homes. The project will create 2000 jobs during construction and 200–300 ongoing jobs during operations and maintenance stages, creating new and enduring supply chains. It has an operational lifespan of up to 30 years. Capital investment of about $10 billion is proposed, and construction could begin in 2029.
Gippsland Dawn’s project director, Darragh White, welcomed the announcement by Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen.
“Gippsland Dawn will bring strong and lasting benefits to Gippsland and Australia,” Mr White said.
“We look forward to continuing our engagement with Minister Chris Bowen, Victorian Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio, GLaWAC (Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Coperative), local communities, unions and the energy industry in Victoria.
“We will work closely with commercial and recreational fishers and boaters to understand how we can share the ocean.”
Mr White said the feasibility licence will enable investigation work, including offshore metocean, geophysical and geotechnical investigations. Detailed technical studies and surveys will be completed.
“Gippsland Dawn will continue to seek feedback and engage closely with stakeholders and the community during every step of the project’s development,” he said.
A commercial licence is required for the project to move into the construction phase.
This will be subject to a range of environmental and planning approvals and obtaining grid connection.
BlueFloat Energy Australia country manager, Nick Sankey, said offshore wind is poised to become a critical part of the renewable energy system in Australia.
“Offshore wind will help ensure reliability and security of electricity supply, particularly as we transition away from fossil fuels,” he said.
“The offshore wind industry will contribute toward the Australian Government’s emissions reduction plan of net zero emissions by 2050.
It will also significantly help meet the Victorian Government’s emissions reduction target of net zero by 2045,” he said.
