The developers of the proposed Hunter Coast Offshore Wind Project have released a visual impact simulation for the project.
The 110-turbine will be located 20 to 50 kilometres off the Hunter-Central Coast and be at least partially visible on the horizon between Newcastle and The Entrance.
Project partners BlueFloat Energy and Energy Estate have also announced plans to expand the project's size from 1.4gigawatts to 1.65gigawatts.
When operating at maximum capacity the project would generate about 80 per cent of Eraring Power station's output.
The Hunter-Central Coast region is one of six preferred sites around Australia that the federal government recently announced as being suitable for offshore wind technology.
BlueFloat Energy and Energy Estate is one of seven proponents vying to establish an offshore wind project in the region.
The government is expected to open public consultation for offshore wind in the Hunter-Central Coast in the near future.
The Hunter Coast Offshore Wind Project partners cited the potential size of the Commonwealth offshore wind zone, the region's robust grid capacity and the accelerated retirement of coal fired energy generation in NSW as reasons for expanding the capacity of its project.
"Since we started the development of the Hunter Coast Offshore Wind Project in 2020 the need for new, large-scale generation capacity in the Hunter-Central Coast region has accelerated - with the retirement date for the existing coal-fired power stations moving forward by decades," Energy Estate co-founder Simon Currie said.
"Offshore wind can play a key role in the clean energy future for the region, supporting existing energy users, replacing thermal generation and powering new industries like green hydrogen exports and clean manufacturing."
BlueFloat is already developing several European offshore wind projects, including in waters off Spain, Portugal, Italy and Scotland.
The proponents hope to start construction on the Hunter Coast project in the next five years, pending state and federal government approvals.
The turbines, to be manufactured in the Hunter, would be about 250 metres tall and be tethered to the ocean floor with cables. They have an estimated lifespan of between 30 to 40 years.
In addition to offshore wind, Energy Estate is a key stakeholder in the establishment of the Hunter hydrogen network (H2N) - a large-scale hydrogen production, transportation and export project that aims to enable the development of the hydrogen economy in the Hunter Valley in partnership with hydrogen users and exporters.
Energy Estate and Japan's Eurus Energy recently signed an agreement that will have the renewable energy developer take an investment stake in the $2 billion H2N project.
Eurus Energy Group, a global renewable energy independent power producer and developer, is jointly owned by Toyota Tsusho Corporation and the Tokyo Electric Power Company.
It is actively pursuing more than 4 gigawatts of renewable energy generation projects across 14 countries including Japan, Korea, USA, Chile and Europe. It also owns 120 megawatts of operating wind assets in Australia.
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