By STEFAN BRADLEY
PRIME Minister Anthony Albanese and Wellington Shire Council have been in touch about fair compensation for offshore wind projects set up in the community, following a question asked by Wellington Shire Deputy Mayor, Cindy Madeley on the ABC’s Q&A TV program.
Cr Madeley noted a lack of mandatory compensation payments for communities affected by offshore wind projects, whereas they were available for onshore projects. Council is pushing for federal legislation (not state government legislation) that would provide benefits and/or compensation for communities hosting these projects.
The federal government declared Gippsland an offshore wind zone in late 2022. They have since given 12 feasibility licences for offshore wind projects in the region.
On Q&A, Cr Madeley said: “at the moment there’s currently no federally mandated community benefit scheme for offshore wind. There is for onshore, not for offshore”.
“So our concern (is) that it will be our communities that build the infrastructure for the power for the people that are in metropolitan regions – that’s our concern,” she said.
Council said that since the Q&A appearance, in which Mr Albanese pledged to raise the matter with federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, Mr Albanese has personally called Cr Madeley to confirm his team would respond, and has responded to Cr Madeley’s text.
Cr Madeley reinforced council’s position in a letter to Mr Albanese she wrote that has called for three key things: a “conversation about fair compensation”; an outcome on council’s application for the federal government’s Regional Precincts and Partnerships Program (rPPP), which provides funding to support development proposals and construction-ready projects; and a visit from both leaders to meet with affected communities.
In the letter, Cr Madeley says Wellington Shire Council has strongly advocated for new energy investment, particularly offshore wind development in Bass Strait.
“We welcome the recent granting of feasibility licenses to offshore wind investors and are now engaging with each company to establish collaborative partnerships for the future,” Cr Madeley said.
“Beyond these discussions, we are also working closely with key regional stakeholders, including neighbouring councils, education providers such as TAFE and Federation University, and importantly, our First Nations leaders to position Gippsland as a leader in offshore wind and a blueprint for the rest of the nation.
“However, a critical challenge now faces our region, putting our well-established social licence to the test. On Monday night’s Q&A (which aired February 17), I asked you directly whether the federal government would assist in co-designing legislation for Community Benefits and a Payment in Lieu of Rates (PiLoR) mechanism. The aim is clear, to ensure that regional communities who bear the impact of this infrastructure are fairly compensated for their role in Australia’s clean energy future.”
There is a PiLoR framework in Victoria that allows electricity generators to negotiate payments made to local councils, instead of paying rates. The dollar amounts are negotiated for each project.
It’s ultimately up to the federal government what legislation would entail for community benefits and/or compensation. The Prime Minister in his response to Cr Madeley on Q&A pointed to renewable projects in other communities that led to payments, either “directly or indirectly through funding infrastructure (and) community activities as well”.
