Australia’s planned 1.5GW undersea electricity and data interconnector, Marinus Link, has received the first Transmission and Infrastructure Licence (TIL) under the country’s offshore infrastructure regime.
Climate Change and Energy Assistant Minister Josh Wilson granted the licence under the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021, giving Marinus Link the final Commonwealth approval required before full construction proceeds.
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The licence covers the construction, installation, operation, maintenance, repair and eventual decommissioning of the project’s offshore subsea power cables and associated fibre-optic infrastructure. It will remain in force until 2090.
Furthermore, the licence triggers protections under the Act, including safety and protection zones designed to prevent vessel anchoring or other commercial damage to the cables once they are in place.
Marinus Link CEO Stephanie McGregor said: “The Transmission and Infrastructure licence is one of the final permits ahead of construction, allowing electricity to be transmitted through Commonwealth waters and providing protection over the subsea cable route.
“It is the first TIL granted under the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021 – the national regime designed to support offshore renewable energy and transmission infrastructure in Commonwealth waters.
“We have worked collaboratively with the registrar in supporting the new framework, and we are proud to have helped pave the way for the emerging offshore electricity sector.”
Preparatory works on the project began earlier this year and construction activity is expected to intensify over the coming months.
The licence follows approval last year under the Commonwealth’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
Marinus Link will run between Heybridge in north-west Tasmania and the Latrobe Valley in Victoria, spanning 345km of cabling.
Of that total, 255km will be laid undersea across Bass Strait, with a further 90km routed underground through Gippsland.
Converter stations at Heybridge and Hazelwood will sit at each end of the link, alongside a communications station at Sandy Point in Victoria.
At full capacity, the interconnector will be able to supply the equivalent of 1.5 million Australian homes, roughly three-times the capacity of the existing Basslink interconnector between Tasmania and Victoria.
The fibre-optic component of the project is expected to increase internet capacity between the two states by 150 times.
The link will enable greater two-way electricity flows, allowing Tasmania to import surplus mainland renewables while reserving and storing hydropower for export to the national grid during periods of peak demand.
