| Work Detail |
A consortium consisting of Simply Blue Group, Subsea7, and Spark Renewables has revealed its plans for the development of the Sea Fern floating offshore wind project in the recently declared Hunter wind zone in the Pacific Ocean.
Sea Fern Floating Offshore Wind is currently in the inception phase of applying for a Feasibility Licence under the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021. A Feasibility Licence, if granted, will enable the project team to consult and work collaboratively with the community, businesses, and industry.
The project will have a generation capacity of up to 2 GW. The development approval would be required by 2030 to start construction, with expected operations running through to the 2060s and beyond.
Simply Blue Group, Subsea7 and Spark Renewables will be working with local specialist contractors to design a stakeholder engagement framework. The Sea Fern Floating Offshore Wind team will seek to listen to and engage with communities to build and maintain a long-term relationship with Newcastle and broader New South Wales.
Within the seven-year Feasibility Licence period the project team would undertake the necessary technical, environmental and social impact studies, approvals and consultation, to ensure the project will be safe and viable.
Success through this process would provide certainty of licencing required for accessing the seabed and represent the start of a long-term project.
Simply Blue Group and Subsea7 have worked together since 2019 to successfully develop one of Scotland’s most advanced floating offshore wind projects – the Salamander Offshore Wind Farm – and will use this experience to successfully deliver the Sea Fern project in Australia. |
