RWE makes Australian offshore wind debut with 2GW project

RWE has been granted a feasibility licence for the future development of an offshore wind farm close to Australia's Kent Group islands, located off the Gippsland coast, Victoria.

The licence approval grants an exclusive seven-year seabed right to develop the Kent Offshore Wind Farm project and allows RWE to apply for a commercial licence to build and operate the wind farm for up to 40 years, the developer announced today (Wednesday).

The area forms part of Australia’s first designated offshore wind zone and is located in the Bass Strait between Tasmania and the Australian mainland. The site is about 67km off the coast and has average water depths of 59 metres.

RWE said the awarded lease area has the potential to host a wind farm with up to 2GW of capacity. It is expected to become operational in the first half of the 2030s, “subject to the timing of the planning and approvals process, secured offtake as well as grid connection”.

“Australia is a very attractive growth market for renewable energy,” said Sven Utermöhlen, CEO of RWE Offshore Wind.

"With the Kent project, we will work on developing one of the first offshore wind farms off the Australian coast. This is in line with our strategy to grow our renewables portfolio in Australia and the wider APAC region.”

RWE said it now plans to carry out studies to help determine the project design and to submit applications for planning permission. It also plans to engage with key stakeholders, First Nations groups and other communities.

An offtake agreement will be pursued at a later stage.

The RWE Group entered Australia in 2018 with the construction and subsequent operation of one of the country’s largest solar farms – 249MW Limondale Solar Farm in New South Wales.

In 2023, the company was awarded a long-term energy service agreement to deliver and operate Australia’s first eight-hour battery adjacent to the existing Limondale Solar Farm.

The company said it plans to invest around A$6bn (US$4bn) by 2030 in order to develop up to 3GW of onshore wind, solar and battery projects across the country.

Gippsland Dawn

In another announcement today a feasibility licence for the 2.1GW Gippsland Dawn Offshore Wind Project, located between Paradise Beach and Ocean Grange was granted.

Madrid-based offshore wind developer BlueFloat Energy, the proponent of Gippsland Dawn, has said it wants to put the project into operation by 2031, outlining plans to invest $10bn.

Gippsland Dawn’s Project Director, Darragh White, welcomed the announcement by Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen.

“Gippsland Dawn will bring strong and lasting benefits to Gippsland and Australia," he said.

“The feasibility licence will enable investigation work, including offshore metocean, geophysical and geotechnical investigations. Detailed technical studies and surveys will be completed.

A commercial licence is required for the project to move into the construction phase, and this will be subject to a range of environmental and planning approvals and obtaining grid connection, Bluefloat Energy noted.

Renewables 'superpower'

Australia's government is pursuing a 'Reliable Renewables Plan', which aims to deliver 32GW of new generation and storage for the grid by 2030, under an expanded Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS).

The CIS will target both dispatchable and variable capacity across the country and is intended to add substance to a campaign pledge by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to turn the country into a ‘renewables superpower'.