Developers of the Navigator North offshore wind farm, set for development off the coast of Gippsland, have revealed that they would not apply for the first round of state auctions.

The AUD 8bn ($5.3bn) offshore wind farm, developed by Origin and RES, is a 110-turbine farm planned offshore in the Gippsland wind zone.

The 1.5GW project is intended to supply power to more than 1m homes and create 200 jobs if successfully developed. It was one of a dozen projects given a feasibility licence by the Australian government last year.

Origin and RES claimed they couldn’t participate in the upcoming auction due to an inability to meet timelines. However, they will continue working on the project and look to apply to other auctions.

This adds more doubt to the country’s offshore industry. This comes a few months after another developer, BlueFloat Energy, decided to withdraw from its offshore wind projects in Australia.

The country’s government will have to change its tactics to hit all its targets. The Victorian government has a renewable energy target of 40% by the end of 2025, increasing to 95% by 2035. That includes at least 2 GW from offshore wind by 2032. Nationally, Australia has a target of achieving 82% renewable energy by 2030.