The Victorian Government has announced a 2GW offshore wind capacity auction which will open in September this year.
Victorian Minister for Climate Action, Energy and Resources Lily D’Ambrosio said feasibility licence holders will be able to submit a confidential Registration of Interest (ROI) which will close in May.
Related article: New offshore wind feasibility licences for NSW and Victoria
Selected participants will be announced in October 2026. Successful developers will be supported through a Contract for Difference (CfD) scheme which will provide investment certainty.
Australia has declared six offshore wind zones so far, with the Gippsland and Southern Ocean zones in Victoria, Hunter and Illawarra in New South Wales, Bass Strait in Tasmania, and Bunbury, in Western Australia.
Twelve feasibility licences have been awarded to offshore wind projects proposed for the Gippsland declared offshore wind zone and one feasibility licence for the Southern Ocean offshore wind zone.
Victoria’s aims to achieve 2GW of offshore wind energy capacity under development by 2032, 4GW by 2035, and 9GW by 2040.
Minister D’Ambrosio has also opened tenders for a delivery partner for Victoria’s Wind Worker Training Centre, which will make sure Victoria has a strong pipeline of skilled workers in renewable energy for the future.
Related article: New offshore wind zone declared in northern Tasmania
The centre will deliver training for the onshore and offshore wind sectors and the provider must work closely with industry and unions to make sure the training responds directly to the skills needed on the job.
The training will be inclusive of all skill and career levels, making sure there is opportunity for existing workers to retrain and upskill, including Gippsland coal station workers that want to transition to our nation-leading offshore wind industry.
