Offshore staff
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Australia’s federal government has opened consultations on a renewable energy region offshore Western Australia.
It is one of six potential offshore energy zones around the country identified by the federal government and the last to be opened for consultation.
The proposed 7,674-sq km area is 20 km from the coast over an offshore region between Dawesville and Cape Naturaliste.
Copenhagen Energy development manager, Australia, Joy Francis-Hayes said there was increasing investor interest in the state’s offshore wind potential.
The company has submitted plans under the EPBC Act for three offshore wind farms, with its Leeuwin offshore wind farm to be located in Commonwealth waters in the Bunbury region.
“We have been working in WA [Western Australia] for three years,” she said, “conducting initial scoping studies, assessing WA’s wind resources and talking to a range of stakeholders from government and industry to communities to understand their concerns and how we can respond during our project development.
“There is still considerable work to be done to obtain all planning and license approvals. This consultation period is just the beginning.
“Our Leeuwin project is ideally placed to operate within the zone outlined by the federal government and is close to existing transmission infrastructure. Our proposed project area starts 20 km off the coast, but turbines could be located up to 70 km off the coast.”
Leeuwin will feature up to 200 turbines and six substations, connected to a land-based transmission station and delivering 3 GW of electricity per year to homes and businesses locally. The turbines could range in height from 268 m to 385 m.
02.21.2024
