Australian State Joins Global Leaders in Offshore Wind

Wind turbines in the Baltic Sea offshore wind farm near Zingst, Germany, on April 29, 2011. Joern Pollex/Getty Images

Victoria has been formally admitted to the Global Offshore Wind Alliance (GOWA) as its first sub-national jurisdiction.

In 2022, Australia as a nation joined GOWA as one of its current 14 member nations and represents the second-largest offshore wind pipeline in the Asia-Pacific region, just behind China. However, the winds along Victoria’s coast are prime locations for wind farms, able to stimulate a booming and emerging sector, hence joining GOWA as its first sub-national.

This offshore wind industry in Victoria is expected to create over 6,000 jobs and play a crucial part in its journey towards achieving 95 percent renewable energy production by 2035 and attaining net-zero emissions by 2045.

Minister for Energy and Resources Lily D’Ambrosio welcomed the membership and said that Victoria is well-positioned to become Australia’s offshore wind capital.

“Victoria’s successful application to join the Global Offshore Wind Alliance solidifies our abundant offshore wind resources as among the best internationally, with our ambitious targets attracting major investment and jobs, solidifying Victoria’s future as Australia’s offshore wind capital.”

The main goal of GOWA is to bring together international governments, the private sector, organisations, and other stakeholders to accelerate the deployment of offshore wind power to achieve a total global offshore wind capacity of at least 380 GW (gigawatts) by 2030, with 35 GW on average each year across the 2020s and a minimum of 70 GW each year from 2030. A gigawatt is equal to one billion watts of power.

Victoria’s ambitious goal of creating 2 GW from the offshore wind capacity by 2032, 4 GW by 2035, and 9 GW by 2040 has attracted investment from Australia and across the globe.

Leading the Nation

Last year, the federal government declared an area in Bass Strait off the Gippsland coast in Victoria as Australia’s first offshore wind zone and is now exploring feasibility licenses for potential developers. Successful applicants are expected to be announced later this year.

In the meantime, the state is ready to support the offshore wind industry with a well-qualified and skilled workforce, advanced manufacturing, stable supply chains ,and first-class infrastructure such as ports and transportation.

The Victorian Budget 2023/24 invested $27 million to progress the development of the Victorian Renewable Energy Terminal at the Port of Hastings. The terminal will support wind construction delivery of up to 1 GW per year, process turbines up to 18 megawatts, and service multiple offshore wind developments simultaneously.

Andrew’s Labor Government also established Offshore Wind Energy Victoria, which is working towards a formal competitive acquisition process for the first batch of offshore wind energy capacity in 2025.