Wind

Duo Simply Blue and Subsea7 strike up with local Spark for Australian floating wind

Trio to partner on projects in highly prospective Hunter and Illawarra zones off state of New South Wales as Antipodean deepwater play builds momentum

Simply Blue chief Sam Roch-Perks
Simply Blue chief Sam Roch-PerksFoto: Simply Blue

International offshore energy developer duo Simply Blue and Subsea7 have finalised a deal with Australian outfit Spark Renewables to bid to jointly build floating wind power projects off the coast of New South Wales (NSW).

The trio, which will focus on the Hunter and Illawarra regions – among the key development zones marked out last year by the Australian government for offshore wind plant, said it had “come together [for the] complementary expertise [of] world-leading companies, ensuring the deliverability of the projects proposed”.

“With a long coastline and stable continental shelf, we see huge potential for floating wind projects off NSW,” said Simply Blue CEO Sam Roch-Perks. “The state government has announced renewable energy zones making it clear that it’s committed to a diverse, affordable, modern energy system, with wind energy firmly in the mix.”

Spark Renewables CEO Anthony Marriner said the consortium would “investigate the suitability of areas for developing an offshore wind farm within the proposed Hunter and Illawarra area”, with “community-wide and stakeholder-specific consultation with ecological agencies, traditional owners, and maritime, aviation and defense [sectors]”.

“As an NSW-based company, we are excited by the opportunities that offshore wind projects can bring to [the state] including an increase in local manufacturing and jobs to support the local economy,” he said.

The partners said Australia’s emerging offshore wind industry would provide “a critical opportunity for workers” in NSW, as the state moves to decarbonise its historically coal-heavy energy supply.

NSW is seen as having the potential to become a leading centre in the global floating wind industry with first planned projects expected to enter construction as soon as 2028, according a major new supply chain report on the sector.
Australia’s fledgling offshore wind industry got a huge boost last March as the state of Victoria set the nation’s first targets for the sector and said it expects to be taking its first power from wind at sea as soon as 2028.
Pacesetting offshore wind developers including EDF, Oceanex, Equinor, Corio and BlueFloat have pipelines in development off Australia. Simply Blue, which has a portfolio of 10GW of floating projects off Ireland, the UK, Europe and the Americas, is making its entry into the region with the Spark tie-up.
Subsea7 has parternship with Simply Blue on the Salamander floating wind-powered hydrogen project it is building with Orsted in Scottish waters.
Consultancy DNV calculates floating projects today make up over 15% of the total offshore wind deployment in the pipeline for switch-on by mid-century, equal to some 264GW of the 1.75TW slated to be installed.
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Published 22 March 2023, 01:04Updated 22 March 2023, 01:06
Simply Blue EnergySubsea 7AustraliaAsia-PacificOffshore wind