Spanish giant wins contracts for transmission projects to connect offshore and onshore renewables

Spanish energy giant Acciona has snagged contracts on two major Australian transmission projects at opposite ends of the country – a line connecting the first of the nation’s offshore wind projects to Victoria’s grid, and a network upgrade to accommodate more renewables in Western Australia.

VicGrid on Thursday said Acciona had been named as the preferred development partner to co-develop the shared transmission infrastructure needed to connect the first two gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind generated off to the coast of Gippsland to Victoria’s electricity network.

Building the new grid infrastructure to host what could, by 2040, amount to 9 GW of new renewable energy generated out at sea, is one of the key tasks facing Victoria as it races to meet its initial targets of at least 2 GW of offshore wind by 2032 and 4 GW by 2035.

The 60 km line will use 500 kilovolt (kV) double-circuit overhead transmission line technology, starting near a proposed new terminal station in Giffard, next to the Ninety Mile Beach coastline and connecting to the Loy Yang Power Station switchyard in the Latrobe Valley.

“Connecting offshore wind to Victoria’s electricity network is an important part of preparing our grid for the future, and Acciona’s appointment brings us another step closer to making that happen,” VicGrid chief Alistair Parker said in a statement on Thursday.

VicGrid says Acciona was selected through a competitive tender process that began in 2024 and required proponents to demonstrate how they would work with landholders, Traditional Owners and communities throughout project delivery.

The Gippsland offshore wind transmission project remains subject to environmental, planning and other statutory approvals and is expected to be complete in 2031.

Over the other side of the country, Acciona, Genus Plus and UGL Engineering have been awarded the contract by the WA government to deliver the Clean Energy Link – East, which is expected to unlock around 2.3 GW of renewable energy capacity in the state’s Wheatbelt region.

Stage one of the project includes new and upgraded transmission lines between Collie and Darkan to increase energy capacity from renewable energy zones in the eastern and south-eastern regions of Western Australia’s main grid, the South West Interconnected System.

The work includes a new 330kV terminal at Cordering, an expansion of Shotts and Muja terminals, 38 km of new transmission lines from Shotts to Cordering, and 54km of new transmission lines from Muja to Cordering.

“Affordable, reliable, and lower carbon energy will power jobs in defence, advanced manufacturing, and the downstream processing of our minerals, including in green iron,” WA premier Roger Cook said in a statement on Wednesday.

“That includes investing in Clean Energy Link – East to secure local jobs and opportunities for WA businesses while building a stronger energy system.

“Having granted it Priority Project status, we are fast-tracking its delivery, supporting up to 600 local jobs and ensuring our grid is ready for when we get out of State-owned coal by 2030.”

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