BlueFloat Energy and Energy Estate have said they will expand the proposed capacity of their Greater Gippsland Offshore Wind Project in Australia from 1.275 GW to 2.085 GW.
The so-called Southern Winds bottom-fixed project is located in the Bass Strait, 10 – 30 kilometers off the coast of Gippsland in Victoria, which last month was declared by the Australian Government as the first area to be assessed for suitability for offshore wind developments.
The site falls within the Portland West Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) announced by the Victorian Government.
BlueFloat says the increase in capacity to more than 2GW results is the result of a detailed analysis of the investigation area announced in 2021 and its potential for offshore wind. "It takes into account the proposed offshore zone area, available grid capacity, accelerated retirement of coal fired energy generation and the Australian Government’s support for an increasing but orderly transition to renewable energy," the company said.
“It’s no surprise that Gippsland was selected as the first declared area given the region´s obvious advantages – excellent wind resources, a strong skills base with a maritime heritage, a long history of industrial development, and it is home to a well-established offshore energy industry already,” said Nick Sankey, Country Manager for BlueFloat Energy.
“There is also clear political will and a strong appetite for the necessary renewables-led economic evolution that is coming; this was extremely evident at the successful and well attended Gippsland New Energy Conference held in Sale in August,” said Mr Sankey.
“The expansion of our Gippsland project is aligned with the Victorian Government’s ambitious target for offshore wind generation” says Simon Currie, Founder of Energy Estate. “It demonstrates BlueFloat Energy and Energy Estate’s commitment to the development of large-scale projects, which can enhance long term energy security in Victoria and across the National Electricity Market (NEM).“
We are excited that the Australian Government announced 5 more zones across Australia, and we encourage everyone to make a submission by 7 October 2022 to the Government’s consultation on the suitability of the Bass Strait off Gippsland as the first declared offshore wind zone.
BlueFloat Energy and Energy Estate have a portfolio of offshore wind projects in development in Australia including the Hunter Coast Offshore Wind Project and the Wollongong Offshore Wind Project in NSW and the Southern Winds Offshore Wind Project in Victoria. The partners are also assessing further sites for large scale offshore wind projects across Australia.