The Illawarra Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) has attracted $43 billion worth of potential investments. It comes in response to a call for expressions of interest for large-scale energy and green manufacturing projects.
Energy Minister Matt Kean announced that 44 projects, including offshore and onshore wind, solar, energy storage, pumped hydro, green hydrogen, and green steel, had been registered, with a total capacity of 17 gigatonnes.
“The response has been tremendous, with particularly strong interest in offshore wind, energy storage technologies, and green hydrogen. The Illawarra REZ will help deliver cheap and reliable energy, power existing industries, support emerging industries to thrive and create thousands of new jobs in the future,” Minister Kean said.
Registered industry interest includes over $34 billion in potential investment from 10 wind generation projects, with 8 located offshore, totalling 12.9 gigawatts of generation capacity; 5 solar projects; 16 energy storage projects including 11 batteries; 4 pumped hydro projects; 4 hydrogen production and two hydrogen electricity generation projects; and 3 new load projects including green steel manufacturing.
“This highlights the variety of large-scale energy projects being developed in the region, that will ensure the Illawarra plays a role as the powerhouse of the renewable energy economy,” Minister Kean said.
According to him, Illawarra has a proud history of manufacturing, and the REZ will only build the legacy, with ROI projects, including emerging manufacturing industries such as green steel production.
The Energy Corporation of NSW (EnergyCo) will use the ROI data to inform the Illawarra REZ’s timing, capacity, design, and location. It is the first step in engaging with the industry on its design.
EnergyCo will work closely with industry, local government, local communities, and other stakeholders to design and deliver the REZ.
The Illawarra REZ is anticipated to be formally declared under the NSW Government’s Electricity Roadmap legislation by the end of 2022.
