German energy group awarded licence for Australian marine wind farm

The German energy group RWE has secured the licence for a large wind-farm project off the coast of Australia.

The company says it has been granted the seven-year right to develop a facility off the state of Victoria in the south-east of the continent. The site is located 67 kilometres off the coast with average water depths of 59 metres.

Following the development of the project, which includes carrying out geographical investigations, RWE would have to apply for a commercial licence for the construction and operation of the wind farm. This licence would be valid for up to 40 years.

RWE says the leased area has the potential for an electricity capacity of up to 2 gigawatts. This could supply up to 1.6 million households in Australia with green electricity.

The project is still at an early stage but construction could start in the early 2030s.

RWE has been active in Australia for some time, and is developing several onshore wind farm projects there. The energy company also already operates a large solar park in Australia with a capacity of 249 megawatts. A battery storage facility is to be built next to it.

"Australia is a very attractive growth market for renewable energies," RWE manager Sven Utermöhlen said. "We are developing one of the first offshore wind farms off the Australian coast, in line with our strategy of further expanding our green portfolio in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region."