Offshore wind energy will play a very important role in Australia's future, supporting more than 23 GW of output, which could in turn supply more than 20 million homes with renewable energy.
This is also partly due to the need to replace more polluting sources of energy generation in line with the Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) initiative launched by the Australian government to facilitate the energy transition. From an economic point of view, the commitment to the construction of offshore wind farms could mean a contribution of more than $40 billion to the country's GDP between 2027 and 2040, according to forecasts made by the Clean Energy Council.
Although no offshore wind farms are yet under construction - as opposed to the 90 onshore wind farms already in operation in the country - 12 feasibility licenses were granted in 2024 in the Gippsland region of Victoria, as a step prior to the start of the installation works, which could begin later this year. Gippsland is the most favourable region for the installation of this type of infrastructure - along with Newcastle, in New South Wales and Gladstone, in Queensland.
This being so, adapting the country's port infrastructures to favour the development of future wind projects, meeting the necessary requirements for loading and unloading materials onto barges and the marshaling of wind turbine components - jackets, transition pieces and turbines. This is currently one of the main obstacles to the proper development of offshore wind farms in Australia, as is the collaboration with partners with proven experience in order to complete these tasks successfully.
Sarens has two offices in Australia (in Brisbane, Queensland and Perth, Western Australia), and a technical staff highly specialised in the tasks required for the installation of offshore wind farms in any of the coasts of the country, with the necessary capacity to advise its clients to identify their needs in terms of machinery and transport solutions and with regard to the necessary modifications and adaptations to be carried out in the points where the projects are developed.
In addition to having a complete fleet of local machinery, Sarens has different alternatives spread around the world that can be mobilised at any time to meet any requirement of its customers, regardless of the complexity or the load that needs to be moved.
Offshore wind energy is expected to be a major source of job creation in the expansion areas, with more than 8,000 new jobs per year from 2030 onwards, with more than 19,000 jobs created in peak construction and more than 7,000 in the operation of the farms.
Once all the farms planned for the next few years are operational, it is estimated that more than 23 GW of production will be contributed to the national energy system, which could supply renewable energy to more than 20 million homes, according to PWC's forecasts in its report “Australia's pathway to energy transition is blowing in the wind”.
Sarens has extensive international experience in the assembly and maintenance of wind farms. It has participated in various installations in France such as Fécamp, Saint Nazaire, Provence Grand Large and in the lifting and transport work for the foundation bases of the new offshore wind farm in Saint Brieuc, located off the Brittany coast.
During this project, Sarens successfully transported loads weighing over 1150 tons.
More recently, Sarens has been actively involved in the reception and loading operations of monopiles and transition pieces for 176 turbines for the Coastal Virginia Offshore wind farm in the US and the marshalling and installation of 62 monopiles in the Moray West offshore wind farm, each weighing up to 2000 tons, the largest and heaviest XXL monopiles ever to be handled in the UK.
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