The developer planning Australia’s first offshore wind farm has linked with human resources specialist Atlas Professionals for a study of the project’s labour market requirements.
Star of the South – which hopes to build up to 2.2GW off the state of Victoria – and Atlas Professionals will look at workforce availability and gauge requirements for skills and training. They will also assess the need and availability for specialist vessels to build the wind farm.
Star of the South cleared a big hurdle in March when the Australian government granted an exploration licence allowing the project development team to carry out technical and environmental studies in federal waters at the proposed project site off Gippsland.
Star of the South – which is backed by global offshore wind investor Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) – wants to deploy turbines 10-25km off the coast in the Bass Strait, to meet demand in centres including Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city.
Edgare Kerkwijk, strategic director renewables APAC at Atlas Professionals said: “Since starting our renewable energy activities earlier this year, we have managed to get engagements in Australia, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Japan. This is evidence that the regional offshore wind market is growing rapidly and the need for skilled manpower is growing equally fast.”