Michelle Slater
The state government is providing $40 million towards three offshore wind projects in Gippsland to support feasibility studies, pre-construction and environmental assessments.
The Energy Innovation Fund is will help Star of the South, Macquarie Group and Flotation Energy create up to 5600 jobs and bring more than $18 billion in new investment into Victoria.
It comes as the Senate passed legislation last week to pave the way for offshore wind in Commonwealth waters.
The Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Bill will provide a critical legal framework for these projects.
The state government is contributing $19.5 million for Star of the South to progress developing Australia’s first offshore wind project.
The funding will allow Star of the South to continue onshore and offshore geotechnical investigations, transmission design, industry development and ongoing community engagement.
The 2.2 gigawatt wind farm is planned off the coast of Yarram to plug into the Latrobe Valley.
Star of the South chief executive officer Casper Frost Thorhauge said the funding was an “important step forward for offshore wind in Australia”.
“This partnership will enable us to keep investing where it’s most needed, while ensuring benefits for government and the community through knowledge-sharing,” Mr Frost Thorhauge said.
Macquarie Group will receive $16.1 million to facilitate the initial development of a 1GW offshore wind farm off the Bass Coast.
Flotation Energy will receive $2.3 million for scoping studies and surveys for a 1.5GW offshore wind farm off the coast of Gippsland.
The news has been welcomed by Friends of the Earth, with the three projects set to deliver 4.7 gigawatts of new renewables into to the grid.
“With the Yallourn coal-fired power station set to close by 2028, we need to start planning for the state’s future energy needs and creating new jobs for people in Gippsland,” Friends of the Earth Gippsland renewables campaigner Wendy Farmer said.
