\u201cAustralia needs new renewable energy projects as coal plants retire and major industrial energy users like the Portland Aluminium smelter switch off coal and gas,\u201d ACF campaigner Jack Redpath told Renew Economy. <\/p>\n
\u201cACF is eager to see a formal project-wide plan to measure and report progress on whether the steps taken result in a healthier population of bats and a stronger ecosystem to support them over time.<\/p>\n
\u201cACF calls on all developers to go further than minimum compliance and adopt nature-positive, net-gain strategies across their businesses. That means planning projects to avoid the most sensitive areas, actively restore habitat and transparently measure and report on whether threatened species and ecosystems are improving.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clean Energy Council chief Jackie Trad says given renewables exist because of a need to protect the environment, it\u2019s important that more are approved. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut we must do it in a way that is streamlined and fit-for-purpose so that Victoria can deliver a timely energy rollout that both reduces environmental impacts and ensures we can keep the lights on for Victorians for the foreseeable future,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n
She pointed out that with last year\u2019s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act reforms, there will be more clarity and certainty for industry about how biodiversity impacts will be assessed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe central focus of these reforms must be to enable faster, more efficient and predictable assessments while improving nature protection and increasing community confidence in assessment processes. This will be key to supporting strong, sustainable outcomes,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n
Major planning milestone<\/p>\n
From an energy generation perspective, the Kentbruck approval is a major milestone for Victoria, which has still struggled to get wind projects through its fast track process.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the fourth wind project over 100 MW to be approved in Victoria since 2019, when Neoen started the planning process for Kentbruck, according to RenewMap data.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rystad analyst Alokita Shukla says 78 per cent of clean energy capacity approved in the state last year were batteries, and wind made up just 8 per cent of approvals, with the planning process creating the biggest bottleneck for development.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cApproval timelines and rising costs are now shaping what gets built, not project ambition,\u201d she wrote on LinkedIn.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSystem planning is already adjusting, with less wind assumed by 2030 as approvals slow and costs rise. Kentbruck does not solve the problem, but it clearly exposes where the bottleneck sits.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, HMC Capital also still needs to lock in funding for the project, and others in its green energy fund.<\/p>\n
Last week it said the \u201cEnergy Transition capital partnering process\u201d is on track and it plans to have something to say before it unveils the half year results in February.<\/p>\n
HMC said in July it would put $50 million of equity into the Victorian generation and storage portfolio it bought from Neoen for $950 million, a deal that only closed in August last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That extra cash was to keep the development of near term projects such as the Moorabool battery and Kentbruck moving ahead, and at the time said it was in talks to raise more development cash for those assets.<\/p>\n
David Di Pilla\u2019s ambitious goal of changing HMC Capital from a property fund to a manager of $50 billion worth of assets within five years had a rough year in 2025, as its shares dived partly in response to the problems at its tenant, struggling healthcare operator Healthscope.<\/p>\n
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