Why BlueFloat's demise is just the beginning, not the end of offshore wind

The Advertiser

6 days ago

The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun.
Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally.
That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning.
This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect.
Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind.
There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter.
With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals.
Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years.
To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports.
Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings.
If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts.
You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business.
So how exactly do we get from here to there?
Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen:
The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new.
Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us.
But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together.
Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love.
That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important.
The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun.
Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally.
That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning.
This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect.
Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind.
There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter.
With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals.
Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years.
To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports.
Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings.
If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts.
You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business.
So how exactly do we get from here to there?
Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen:
The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new.
Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us.
But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together.
Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love.
That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important.
The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun.
Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally.
That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning.
This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect.
Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind.
There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter.
With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals.
Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years.
To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports.
Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings.
If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts.
You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business.
So how exactly do we get from here to there?
Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen:
The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new.
Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us.
But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together.
Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love.
That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important.
The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun.
Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally.
That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning.
This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect.
Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind.
There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter.
With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals.
Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years.
To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports.
Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings.
If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts.
You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business.
So how exactly do we get from here to there?
Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen:
The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new.
Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us.
But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together.
Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love.
That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important.