We’re engaging early before developing the project. We want to know what is important to you, understand what matters to your community, and share updates and assessment findings about the development.

As part of our project development, we will continue to ask for and respond to feedback from the community and stakeholders. We will also continue to host webinars and face-to-face information sessions and updates as the project progresses.

In the meantime, you can contact us by emailing info@southpacificowp.comor find out more by exploring our website.

Power is generated from offshore wind using turbines installed in the ocean. Through a series of cables, electricity is transmitted back to the land to a major connection point and then distributed via onshore grid infrastructure to power homes, businesses, and industry.

Today a typical offshore wind farm uses 10 megawatt (MW) turbines. The next generation of turbines will increase to 15 MW for installation in 3 to 5 years, and it is expected that even larger turbines will be introduced over time. Each 10 MW turbine would typically generate enough electricity each year to meet the needs of over 5,000 households while displacing approximately 35,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

The proposed capacity for the South Pacific Offshore Wind Project is 1.6 GW, which means that the project could generate enough electricity to power 825,000 homes.

Wind turbines can be sited offshore, where the wind is stronger for longer periods and larger turbines can be installed. Offshore wind speeds tend to be higher and the wind is steadier, which in turn captures more wind energy. Due to the large turbine size and site area, offshore wind projects can deliver energy on a significant scale, producing output substantially greater than onshore wind and solar farms.

In some countries (such as the UK), the offshore wind capacity will surpass the onshore wind capacity soon. Given Australia’s world-class wind speeds off many of its coasts, it is anticipated that offshore wind will complement the onshore resources and allow the development of wind projects much closer to large coastal populations, especially as the existing transmission network and coal-fired power plants start to reach the end of their life.

The Commonwealth Government has identified six priority areas for assessment for suitability for offshore wind. Two areas have been declared as offshore wind zones, one off the coast of Gippsland in Victoria and another off the Hunter coast in New South Wales. The Pacific Ocean region near the Illawarra has been identified for priority assessment. We are actively considering potential projects in 4 regions identified by the Commonwealth across Australia.

The Illawarra is in a strong position to facilitate and support the development of the wind farm. There is an opportunity to use the existing highly skilled workforce from the oil and gas industry. Conventional energy generation companies are already diversifying their operations into renewable energy sectors and the offshore oil and gas industry is in a unique position to pivot its highly skilled offshore workforce to complementary jobs in offshore wind.

We are currently working on producing visual simulations that will provide an example of what the wind turbines may look like from various points along the coastline and we will share these once they are available. If you are interested in looking at another example of what wind turbines may look like from certain distances offshore, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and The Danish Energy Agency have developed a virtual offshore wind farm tour. You can access that simulation here.

Our project is very early in planning where it will connect to an onshore substation. Our preference is to use shared infrastructure for transmission from the substation to Dapto and we’re working with the Energy Corporation of NSW (EnergyCo) on the preferred location. We’re currently investigating three options in the Lake Illawarra area as the location for undersea/underground transmission cables.

Wind passing through the turbine blades produces a characteristic sound audible from near the turbines. At ~400m at 38dB it’s equivalent to the noise made by a domestic refrigerator.

However, it’s not expected that you will hear this from the coast given the distance of the turbines of approximately 14-30 km offshore. Any potential noise impact will be assessed as part of the environmental impact assessment required for the Project. We intend to share the results of noise studies and other assessments during the planning and approvals phases of the project.

Climate change is recognised as the biggest threat to marine ecosystems globally. Renewable technologies are playing an important role in reducing climate change. However, any activity in the marine environment has the potential to impact the landscape of the area, seabirds and other marine life.

Our project will need to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under NSW and Commonwealth environmental legislation. Part of this includes many comprehensive specialist studies that assess the merits and potential impacts of the proposed development. Marine life, whale migration, bird studies and other environmental impact studies will all be part of the EIS, as well as other assessments including noise, visual, traffic during construction and more.

We are already consulting with councils in the region. Councils also have the opportunity to provide feedback during the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and approvals phases. The nature of the approvals will be confirmed once the infrastructure that is required is confirmed, however, it is anticipated that approval will be required under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

At this stage, we are working towards exhibition in late 2026, we keep our project timeline up to date on our website to show the progress of the report and recommend keeping an eye on this. The EIS will need to address requirements outlined by both Commonwealth and State Governments. Once this is complete, we will be able to confirm an exact timeline.

A notice of the proposal to declare an area in the Pacific Ocean region off the Illawarra will be issued by the Commonwealth Government. As part of this, there will be a consultation period during which the community will have the opportunity to provide feedback. This feedback will be considered by the Commonwealth Government and used to inform the final declared zone.

As the wind farm isn’t anticipated to be in operation until the end of 2030, it isn’t possible to accurately forecast what the energy industry and energy prices will be looking like at this point. The cost of electricity will be dependent on things such as the composition of energy in NSW (i.e. What percentage of the national electricity market is green energy), the operation of energy providers, and state and federal involvement in price capping.

As seen overseas, fishing operations can be undertaken within the footprint of an operating offshore wind farm. It is worth noting that every country has its own regulations, and Australia is yet to confirm what regulations it will apply.

Based on other offshore wind projects located around the world, many types of boating (including recreational boating) continue to operate as usual within the footprint of an operating offshore wind farm. It is worth noting that every country has its own regulations, and Australia has yet to confirm what regulations it will apply.

The Federal Government will consider and outline the changes (if any) in boating paths (for both the yacht race and other boating activities) along the coastline, as the project will be located within a Federal Government declared offshore wind zone.

The metal portions of a turbine structure are specially coated and maintained to protect from corrosion. The design life of an offshore wind turbine is currently 30-40 years.

No, there is no evidence to suggest that wind turbines have any adverse effect on the health of humans. Results from a five-year-long Flinders University Study released in June of this year found there is no evidence that wind turbine infrasound caused any adverse physiological or psychological effects on humans.

At this stage, it is anticipated that the offshore structures (such as the turbines, associated foundations and electric cables) will be removed as part of the decommissioning process at the end of the wind project’s life. Onshore infrastructure would be expected to remain in the ground and the above-ground infrastructure (such as substations) removed. Requirements for decommissioning will be conditions of the planning approvals for the project.

Currently, around 90% of the wind turbine can be recycled. The platform is usually made of conventional materials (such as concrete or steel), the tower of the wind turbine is made of steel, and the blades are currently made of glass or carbon fibre-reinforced polymer composites (the same material that many boats are made from). The global wind sector is constantly developing new solutions to improve the recyclability of the blades and other components as this is an important issue.

As of July 2023, the Commonwealth Government backed plans to invest between $3 million and $6.3 million in a cooperative project to assist in the recycling of wind turbine blades. It is expected that such recycling methods will continue to be popularised over the coming years.