Equinor will back a potential multi-gigawatt offshore wind project off Tasmania with an eye on powering huge green hydrogen production planned in the Australian island state.
The Norwegian energy giant will join local developer Nexsphere in the Bass Offshore Wind Energy (BOWE) project in the Bass Strait, a proposed fixed-foundation plant at a site 30km off Tasmania’s northeast coast “benefiting from a world class wind resource”.
As well as supplying the grid, the partners singled out the huge Bell Bay Hydrogen Hub planned for Tasmania as a destination for the electricity produced. The state government earlier this year claimed interest from green hydrogen players such as Fortescue Future Industries, Woodside Energy and Origin for Bell Bay, central to Tasmania’s plans to be a “globally significant” green hydrogen exporter by 2030.
Nexsphere CEO Glen Kierse said: “We see BOWE as one of a series of projects that will provide the scale required to generate high-capacity renewable electricity to support significant growth for Tasmania and its emerging green hydrogen sector.”
No timescale was given for BOWE by the new partners, although the project’s website said the wind farm has ambitions to begin commissioning operations as early as 2026, subject to various local approvals. It has “potential to scale up to multiple gigawatts of installed capacity across multiple stages”, said Equinor and Nexsphere.
BOWE is situated in one of the designated offshore wind zones proposed by the Australian government, underpinning a wave of interest in development Down Under from some of the world’s biggest energy groups.
Thomas Hansen, senior director for offshore wind in Australia at Equinor said: “The Bass Strait is a world class offshore wind resource, and this project is well placed to support Australia’s energy transition and Tasmania’s goal to double the production of green electricity by 2040.”
Details of Equinor’s backing for the project were not disclosed, but BOWE marks the Norwegian oil & gas group’s second foray within a few months into Australia’s fast-emerging offshore wind sector.
Equinor earlier this month completed a deal to join gigascale floating wind developments being advanced by Oceanex Energy off New South Wales.
A statement announcing the latest deal – due to complete in Q1 next year – said “Equinor’s ambition in Australia is to access opportunities early and apply international offshore experience to develop offshore wind projects at scale to create long-lasting value and supply homegrown renewables power by working closely with strong local partners”.
