Wind Energy – New Zealand
The consortium formed by BlueFloat Energy, Energy Estate and Elemental Group is announcing today its plans for a multibillion-dollar investment in offshore wind projects in South Auckland and West Waikato, Aotearoa.
The South Auckland-Waikato offshore wind project is the second investment to be announced by the partnership in New Zealand as part of a nation-wide programme to develop up to 5GW of offshore wind.
The project, currently named Waikato Offshore Wind project, is intended to be developed in phases to generate capacity of up to 1.4 GW of power using both fixed and floating foundation technology and capable of powering around 700,000 homes.
Phase 1 of the project is for a ~250 MW development using fixed bottom technology 22 kilometres off the West Waikato coast. The initial phase would create around 300 jobs in construction, operations and maintenance.
Options for Phase 2 utilise floating foundations and include the potential for an 800-1,150 MW development positioned to the west or north of Phase 1. Conservatively Phase 2 will create an additional 800 jobs with the potential for additional jobs dependent on the size of the project.
The consortium has completed its initial site selection and the project is now in the feasibility stage with construction expected to commence before 2030. The lifecycle of offshore wind farms is around 35-40 years at which point they would be decommissioned or re-furbished – providing decades of enduring employment opportunities and a secure supply of renewable generation to the Waikato and Auckland regions.
