The Australian Government has declared an offshore area near Newcastle and the Hunter region being suitable for future wind farm projects.
The announcement follows the declaration of Gippsland off the Victorian coast late last year. The aim is to help improve energy security and sustainability and to bring Australia closer to net zero by 2050.
According to a statement from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, the declared area:
- covers 1,854 square kilometres between the Central Coast and Port Stephens
- is 20 km from the coast in the north and over 35 km from the coast in the south
- has the potential to generate up to 5 gigawatts of renewable wind energy, enough to power an estimated 4.2 million homes
- has potential for offshore wind projects in the area to create up to 3,120 construction jobs and another 1,560 ongoing operational jobs.
A window for for developers to submit feasibility licence applications for proposed offshore wind projects in the new declared area will open on 8 August 2023 and close on 14 November 2023.
The Department adds that, during the feasibility stage, licence holders must undertake detailed environmental assessments and further stakeholder consultation, and that construction cannot begin until the feasibility stage is complete, and environmental and other approvals are in place.
Energy developer Oceanex Energy is partnering with Equinor, a Norway-origin international energy company that is one of the world’s largest offshore energy operators. Jordan Glanville, infrastructure manager at Oceanex Energy, commented in a social media post that,”we’re about to witness the development of an entirely new industry in the region that will bring with it a significant need for jobs and local services and that will grow to become a cornerstone of the NSW energy system”.
The Federal Government notes that “Australia has many areas that may be suitable for offshore wind”. Australian State and Territory waters start at the shore and stretch out 12 nautical miles. Australia’s territorial sea is the first 12 nautical miles from the shore and is legally part of this country. The Australian State and Territory waters therefore overlap the first three nautical miles of the territorial sea. Commonwealth waters start three nautical miles from the coastline and extend to the boundary of Australia’s exclusive economic zone, which stretches 200 nautical miles beyond the territorial sea.
Under Article 56 of the UN Convention on the Law of the sea, each coastal country has the sovereign rights for the purpose of exploring and exploiting, conserving and managing the natural resources, whether living or non-living, of the waters superjacent to the seabed with regard to activities for the economic exploitation and exploration of the zone, such as the production of energy from the water, currents and winds.
Australia regulates offshore wind and other offshore renewable energy developments in Commonwealth waters under the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021 and the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Regulations 2022. See the associated Regulatory Levies Act, Regulatory Levies Regulations and Consequential Amendments Act.
The Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act enables the construction, operation and decommissioning of offshore wind farms. They outline how and where offshore wind projects can operate.
Declaring suitable areas for offshore wind is a ministerial decision; the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water advises the Minister for Climate Change and Energy on suitable areas.
The Hon Chris Bowen MP, the current Minister, declared an area in the Bass Strait off Gippsland, Victoria, as suitable for offshore renewable energy on 19 December 2022. The declared area off Gippsland covers approximately 15,000 square kilometres, and runs from offshore of Lakes Entrance in the east, to south of Wilsons Promontory in the west.
