Spanish giant dumps Victoria project as part of “difficult decision” to end offshore wind ambitions across globe

BlueFloat Energy has dumped plans to build a 2.5 gigawatt offshore wind farm in Victorian waters as part of a “difficult decision” to cease global operations of the company specialising in the use of floating turbine technology.

The Spain-based company had big ambitions for the Asia-Pacific region, including in Australia where it held a feasibility licence for its Gippsland Dawn project in what will be the country’s first offshore wind development zone.

Elsewhere in Australia it had also proposed the 1.6GW South Pacific floating offshore wind project for 14-30km off the coast of New South Wales, between Shellharbour and Clifton and the 1.725MW Eastern Rise project, off the NSW Hunter coast, south of Sydney.

But the company that had distinguished itself in the Australian market by getting ahead of itself and government approvals, has now officially exited the building, after being unable to make the economics work.

“Following a strategic review of current and anticipated global offshore wind market conditions, BlueFloat Energy’s ultimate shareholder Quantum Capital Group has determined that continuing to fund offshore wind developments is no longer commercially viable in the short and medium term.

“[Quantum Capital Group] has taken the difficult decision to cease BlueFloat Energy’s global operations, including Australian based developments and the Gippsland Dawn project in particular,” the company said in a statement emailed to Renew Economy on Tuesday afternoon.

“Funding will no longer be provided to Gippsland Dawn to continue development activities.”

Proposed area for the Gippsland Dawn Offshore Wind Project

With the exit of BlueFloat’s Gippsland Dawn, Victoria’s Gippsland offshore wind zone currently has 11 active feasibility licences for projects, with proposed capacities between 1-3 GW.

The feasibility licences give the companies exclusive seven-year seabed rights to develop their project – including site and environmental investigations and community consultation – and to apply for a commercial licence to build and operate a wind farm.

Victoria will launch Australia’s first ever offshore wind energy auction in September this year, with contracts expected to be awarded before October, 2026. A confidential Registration of Interest (ROI) process for feasibility licence holders kicked off in March and closed in May.

The auction will award offshore wind projects a contract-for-difference (CfD) – a common government support mechanism for driving early renewable energy development, by providing a generator with a fixed price for electricity over a set period – as well as an availability payment.