The government of Victoria has committed A$124.5m, equivalent to about $90.1m, in its 2026/27 budget to move forward with the Renewable Energy Terminal project at the Port of Hastings.
The funding will support the environmental impact assessment process for what is expected to become Australia’s first large-scale offshore wind port facility.
The terminal is designed to allow offshore wind turbine components to be assembled onshore before being shipped out for installation at sea. The project remains subject to full environmental and social assessment, including public consultation, and construction cannot begin before planning and environmental approvals are secured.
Victoria said offshore wind resources off Gippsland could help reduce power prices as older coal-fired power stations are retired, while keeping Gippsland at the center of the state’s energy production for decades.
An auction for Victoria’s first 2 GW of offshore wind capacity is scheduled to launch in August, enough to power around 1.5m homes. At full scale, the offshore wind sector is expected to create more than 2,370 jobs and generate billions of dollars in investment.
Victoria’s ports and freight minister Melissa Horne said the investment would support technical and environmental assessments at Hastings while protecting Ramsar-listed wetlands.
