Argus Media Limited

09/08/2021 | News release | Distributed by Public on 09/07/2021 20:18

Offshore wind role eyed for Australia's oil regulator

Australia's upstream offshore regulator may extend its role to oversee the development of the country's offshore wind industry under proposed legislation submitted to the Australian parliament by the conservative coalition government.

The Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Bill 2021 introduced in the House of Representatives on 2 September proposes that the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (Nopsema) and National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrator (Nopta) act as the regulator and registrar respectively of the offshore wind sector.

Nopsema currently enforces rules governing operational issues at offshore oil and gas fields, while Nopta oversees the issue of upstream offshore exploration and development permits.

These agencies provide existing expertise in regulating offshore infrastructure and using them will avoid additional costs that will otherwise be involved in the establishment of new agencies, the draft legislation said. The regulator will be provided with sufficient powers and enforcement tools to effectively monitor and enforce compliance with the requirements of the offshore electricity infrastructure regulatory framework, the draft legislation said.

Australia has no offshore wind projects so far, although it has some of the best wind resources in the world, according to government agency Geoscience Australia. These wind resources are largely located offshore the southern coastline, including the Bass strait, which is the largest offshore oil and gas-producing region in eastern Australia that lies offshore Victoria and Tasmania.

Australia is seeking more renewable energy capacity to produce hydrogen, known as green hydrogen if it comes from renewable sources.

Australia is likely to start producing hydrogen from grid-connected electrolysers in the July 2024-June 2025 fiscal year and could ramp up output enough to meet 17pc of total power demand within five years under a hydrogen superpower scenario, said the operator of Australia's power and gas markets the Australian Energy Market Operator (Aemo).

Tasmania, which has the lowest greenhouse gas emissions among Australia's six states, has attracted several green hydrogen project developers seeking to gain leverage from the state's renewable energy sector, which generates almost 100pc of the state's power from hydro and wind resources.

The Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Bill 2021 will accelerate a number of projects already under development like the Marinus Link transmission line, Australian energy minister Angus Taylor said. The 1,500MW Marinus link will provide a second transmission link between Tasmania and mainland Australia, which is designed to carry electrons from the isle of Tasmania, where a 4,800MW hydropower storage project known as the Battery of the Nation is also planned, to the state of Victoria, where brown coal-fired plants are the dominant source of power generation.

The passage of this bill will also help progress a number of projects that are already under development such as the 2,200MW Star of the South offshore wind project off the coast of Gippsland, Victoria, and the 3,000MW Sun Cable project that involves a high-voltage power cable to Singapore from the Northern Territory, Taylor said.

By Kevin Morrison