Danish giant plans 1GW offshore wind farm in New Zealand waters

Danish renewables giant Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners is partnering with the New Zealand Superannuation Fund to explore the potential for a 1GW offshore wind farm in the South Taranaki Bight on the west coast of Aotearoa New Zealand’s North Island.

CIP already boasts around 30GW worth of offshore wind projects under development, construction, and operation, across North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania – including the 2.2GW Star of the South offshore wind farm proposed for Vitoria.

It is now looking across the Tasman Sea to partner with NZ Super Fund and explore the potential for large-scale offshore wind energy in the South Taranaki Bight. A feasibility study will be undertaken and managed locally by Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP) and is expected to take around two years to complete.

All going to plan, CIP and NZ Super Fund expect to be able to deliver first power by the end of the decade, and contribute significantly to New Zealand’s goal of reaching 100% renewable energy by 2030.

It says the wind farm could be expanded to 2GW. Even a 1GW offshore wind farm would represent over 11% of the country’s current electricity demand capacity, and could power over 650,000 homes.

“There is a global shift to clean and sustainable energy sources,” said Michael Hannibal, CIP Partner.

“New Zealand has a prime opportunity to utilise its natural resources, in this case offshore wind, to power the country into the future.”

Matt Whineray, CEO of NZ Super Fund, said the climate crisis is driving a global shift in how countries produce energy. “While this proposal is still at a very early, exploratory stage, we are confident it could help New Zealand’s transition away from fossil fuels and towards home-grown clean energy.”