Friends of the Earth Australia is calling on Energy Minister Angus Taylor to support the country’s first offshore wind project, the proposed Star of the South in Victoria, as it has been detained by the federal Coalition government.
According to the non-profit organization, the 2GW project requires state and federal planning approval but is being held up by the government for unknown reasons and minister Taylor is now responsible for its future.
Taylor is said to have a reputation of one of the most anti-wind Members of Parliament in the federal Coalition as he spoke at anti-wind rallies, called for the national renewable energy target to be dismissed, opposed emission reduction targets and was part of an investigation that suggested Victoria allows fracking to proceed in the state.
Friends of the Earth Australia is asking the Energy Minister to immediately provide a status update on the project, approve the requisite exploration license so ecological, social and economic assessment can be carried out, as well as clarify his position on the role of wind energy technology in Australia’s electricity grid as part of action on climate change.
The organization has launched a petition in support of the request.
Located 10-25km off the coast in the Bass Strait, the Star of the South would include up to 250 turbines at a 574km2 area.
The project was initially being developed by the Victoria-based Offshore Energy, which entered into a partnership with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) at the end of 2017 to jointly continue developing the wind farm.