Western Australia declares wind zone for 11.4 GW off Bunbury

The government of Western Australia on Monday declared an offshore wind zone off the coast of Bunbury, with an amended location, a reduced area, and the potential to accommodate a total of 11.4 GW of total power generation capacity.

Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said in a statement that the declared zone has a final area of almost 4,000 square kilometers, which means that it was reduced by about half, and will now be located at least 30 km from shore at its closest point. As a result, it will exclude more than 60% of the recreational fishing areas that were previously requested to be excluded, and provides further separation from breeding areas and migratory paths for Southern Right Whales. Moreover, recreational fishers will be able to conduct their normal operations within the offshore wind zone itself.

Developing this zone would create nearly 7,000 jobs during construction and around 3,500 jobs during operation.

The next step in the process is to launch the application period for feasibility licences, which would start on Tuesday, September 3, and will end on November 6, 2024. Interested parties need to pass this process and then gain environmental and management plan approvals in order to proceed to actual construction.

“Adding offshore wind to WA’s diversity of renewable options is particularly important in WA’s electricity network because it’s a self-contained system, unlike the interconnected system in the Eastern states,” commented Josh Wilson, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy.

Overall, Western Australia is in need of an estimated 50 GW of new generation by 2042, according to minister Bowen.

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