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Port Albert has no pub but will soon have a massive offshore wind farm

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Port Albert has no pub, but the sleepy Victorian town is about to become home to one of the world’s biggest renewable hubs, and local fisherman Ricky Gillespie could not be happier.

The 44-year-old said Star of the South’s offshore project – which is set to create 2000 direct jobs, power 1.2 million homes at peak capacity and cost between $8 billion and $10 billion – would rejuvenate a small town with a general store, a fish and chip shop, and not much else.

Port Albert fisherman Ricky Gillespie, here filling up his boat at the Victorian coastal town’s general store, is all smiles when it comes to Star of the South’s offshore wind project.  Gus McCubbing

“It will be good for the local economy, and it will bring some life to the town. I’m bored witless here sometimes, to be honest,” Mr Gillespie told The Australian Financial Review.

And he is not the only local that Star of the South has won over.

Peter Kennedy, 63, bought the Port Albert general store – which trades in everything from bait and tackle to beers, bread, mail and fuel – in 2020 after he got wind of plans for the Star of the South.

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He has already benefited from the project, enjoying a 20 per cent increase in petrol sales when the firm – owned by Danish fund Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, Australian superannuation fund Cbus and three local investors: Andy Evans, Peter Sgardelis and Terry Kallis – sends out its survey boats.

“We knew the business could only go ahead, not backwards,” Mr Kennedy said.

Down the road at Port Albert Wharf Fish and Chips, Shayne Coleman is more than happy to talk renewable energy as she drops some whiting into the fryer.

The 24-year-old saw her father burn through more than 30 generators over six years at her family’s home in nearby Woodside because they could not get connected to the grid. She said they installed rooftop solar panels two years ago and have not looked back since.

Port Albert fish and chip shop worker Shayne Coleman, 24, says the coastal town is the perfect place for an offshore wind farm.  Gus McCubbing

“Now that I’ve got solar I understand the benefits of renewable energy,” Ms Coleman said. “And out here we get strong easterly winds every single day, so I think it’s a good idea having the wind farm here.”

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Osteopath Kylie Sergentanis, who lives in Port Albert but works in the neighbouring town of Yarram, hopes the wind farm can employ locals, but is concerned about what the project might do to housing affordability.

“There’s already a rental shortage,” the 38-year-old said.

Elders Real Estate agent Greg Tuckett said property prices in the Gippsland region had skyrocketed during the pandemic.

Pressure on housing

And while he is not convinced the Star of the South project, first touted back in 2020, contributed to the current housing crunch, he felt it could do so in the future.

“It was a COVID-driven boom,” Mr Tuckett said. “Any external pressure on the housing to purchase or rent will have adverse effects for existing buyers and renters, simply because the market is that tight already.”

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Retiree Bob Sexton, 77, thinks the town needs more permanent residents to boost local commerce, but he is not counting on the Star of the South to achieve that.

“It will be good for Victoria. I don’t think Port Albert will get much out of it, but I’m keeping an open mind to the whole thing,” he said.

“If there’s more heads in the town, then more shops might stay open. I’d like to see a few more permanent people here, not just rubbernecks.”

Port Albert will be one of the closest points on land to the Star of the South wind farm.  Eddie Jim

Mr Sexton also fears the project’s vast array of transmission lines could butcher the town’s picturesque landscape. This is a wide concern throughout the region. Dozens of activists gathered outside the Gippsland New Energy Conference, held on Thursday an hour’s drive from Port Albert in Sale, with signs that read: “Save our environment, put transmission lines underground”.

But Star of the South says the electricity generated by its wind turbines will be transported to the coast through a 75-kilometre network of underwater cables on the way to the Latrobe Valley. The power will, however, pass through up to two above-ground substations.

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“We’re committed to using underground cables, unless it’s not technically feasible or where overhead lines would have lower impacts,” the company says.

“While it’s more costly to construct underground cables, we believe there are many other benefits for the community, the landscape and the environment.”

This month Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen named five regions with offshore wind projects for future public consultation, and Gippsland was declared open for community feedback.

Gus McCubbing is a journalist at the Australian Financial Review in Melbourne. Connect with Gus on Twitter. Email Gus at gus.mccubbing@afr.com

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