Offshore wind industry eagerly awaits government response

The Australian offshore wind industry, still in its infancy, is awaiting feedback from the Commonwealth Government on 37 applications submitted earlier this year.

 

“Industry is eagerly anticipating the results of the first licence applications for offshore wind projects in Australia,” said Chris Mitchell, Corporate and Projects Partner, DLA Piper.

 

The offshore Gippsland region in Victoria is the first declared area for offshore wind development in Australia, and the results of licence applications for offshore wind projects in the area will be known in coming days.

 

“Offshore wind development will be significant as Australia works towards Net Zero, however industry and stakeholders are seeking a clear regulatory pathway,” said Jack Brumpton, Projects Partner, DLA Piper.

 

“Compared to other jurisdictions, Australia is playing catch-up. We’re focused on working with our clients to navigate this complex and evolving regulatory landscape,” Jack added.

 

One of the areas of greatest complexity for offshore wind developers is the prospect of overlapping licence applications.

 

“Competition for licences is fierce and overlapping licence applications are inevitable. How those overlaps are addressed will be critical to the ultimate success of the industry,” said Peter Betteridge, Associate Director, Create Advisory.

 

DLA Piper and Create Advisory have jointly outlined the prospect of overlapping licence applications and how the process is likely to play out for the first time in Australia. The collaborative article ‘Offshore Wind Tenure in Australia: Revolving Overlapping Applications’ is available here.

 

Authors included Jack Brumpton (Partner), Chris Mitchell (Partner), Fleur Gibbons (Partner), Briar Blount (Senior Associate), and Omar Harduwar (Solicitor) from DLA Piper, and Jordan Mclay (Associate Director) and Peter Betteridge (Associate Director) from Create Advisory.   

 

DLA Piper was ranked the #1 Global Renewable Energy Legal Adviser by Inspiratia for 2021 and 2022 having advised on more renewable energy deals than any other law firm in every quarter of 2022.

 

Create Advisory is a boutique advisory firm focused on providing strategic and commercial advice to clients in the Infrastructure and Major projects sector.