Wollongong, Newcastle leading the way for offshore wind farms in NSW – ABC News

The answer to the growing demand for zero-emission energy is blowin' in the wind, to quote Bob Dylan, if the burgeoning growth in Australian offshore energy proposals is any indication.

At least 18offshore wind farmproposals are on the drawing board, made possible due to the federal government passing its crucial Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Bill late last year.

The most advanced proposal, the Danish-owned 2,200-megawatt Star of the South project off eastern Victoria, with transmission lines mapped to theLatrobe Valley, could be completed as soon as2028.

Plans are also underway for Western Australia, South Australia and multiple other sites in Victoria, while New South Wales has fourhigh-profile schemes:two in the Hunter and two in the Illawarra.

"We certainly see the Illawarra and Newcastle-Hunter as the two stand-out Australian projects," OceanEx chief executive Andy Evans said.

OceanEx, which also has projects for Ulladulla and Eden on the NSW South Coast and Bunbury in WA, is favouring Wollongong and Newcastle because of their links to heavy industry and a deep-sea port.

"Obviously you have got decades in steel manufacture production, logistics, engineering;it's really quite unique compared to the rest of the world to have such a strong skill set and region so close to a deep-water port in particular," Mr Evans said.

It's a view backed by Nick Sankey from BlueFloat Energy, which, together with Energy Estate, has plans for a 1,600MWfloating wind farm off the Illawarra coast, as well as similar-sized plants for the Hunter, Ulladulla and Victoria's Gippsland Coast.

He says like the OceanEx scheme, BlueFloat's Wollongong Offshore Wind Project would use floating turbinesup to three times larger than those used on land.

"We are moving now towards floating technologies where the individual turbines, and we are talking around about 15MWper turbine, will sit floating on the water with big counterweights to weight them down and they will be secured by mooring lines," Mr Sankey said.

"The Wollongong project would potentially contain over 100 of the turbines all situated separately around in the area.

"They will be connected to two floating substations which are then connected in a cable which comes onshore and connects to the electricity grid around the Wollongong region."

The offshore wind farms have the potential to create considerable employment opportunities, both in the ports and at sea during construction and in so-called backroom office jobs.

"It's a real variety [of jobs]welding, fitting and turning, everything involved in steel production, steel fabrication, so shaping the steel to what's required,marine logistics based at the port and out to sea, land-based logistics," Mr Evans said.

"The support jobs are really detailed as well, whether it's legal, finance, administration, warehousing, a real variety.It's really broad, we will really capture a lot of people."

OceanEx predicts 3,000 direct jobs over a four-year construction period for one project alone, with around 300 permanent ongoing local jobs.

Sven Teske from the University of Technology Sydney's Institute for Sustainable Futures was part of a team analysingnational offshore wind resources and grid connection possibilities plus access to port facilities.

"Port Kembla had good wind conditions, a strong connection to the grid, a deep working harbour and some space in the harbour," Professor Teske said.

Planning is also underway in Wollongong and Newcastle for emerging low-emission industries seeking new clean energy as coal and gas are phased out.

"We actually see offshore winds not only as a normal electricity source for the electricity demand we have currently in Australia, but also to produce hydrogen or ammonia or other synthetic fuels," he said.

The offshore wind farms will need to address concerns around visual impact as they will be visible from the coast, and that will not be popular with some people.

"Yes, they will be visible," Mr Sankey said.

"We are currently conducting some visual simulations to assess what they would look like from the shoreline, and that will be part of determining how far out these turbines will go."

Detailed environmental assessments would also beneeded to determine impacts on marine life, with the fishing and other industrieslikely to be affected.

Mr Evans from OceanEx said it had commissioned detailed environmental studies.

"Obviously we're aware of other stakeholders fishing and Defence and the like so our role as good developers even at this early stage is to try to minimise any of those impacts."

Professor Teske says like any other large-scale infrastructure project, environmental and cultural heritage needs to be assessed, evaluated and monitored.

He says assessments conducted overseas are showing offshore wind farms and national parks can coincide.

"I am originally from Germany and there are quite a few offshore wind farms built close to national parks in the last 10 yearsand there are no problems with that," he said.

"But it's very important to talk to the local population, the local people, to actually get their buy-in."

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Wollongong, Newcastle leading the way for offshore wind farms in NSW - ABC News