Blessed with incredible natural resources, Queensland is in prime position to lead Australia’s renewable transformation. 

Queensland is fast becoming the nation’s renewable powerhouse, with exceptional resources, first-rate infrastructure and a clear plan for navigating the renewable transformation all combining to make the state a premier location for clean energy investment. 

In the lead-up to the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which are set to be the world’s first climate-positive Games, Queensland is capitalising on its natural assets to deliver clean, reliable and affordable energy for generations to come.

Queensland’s natural advantage  

Seven times the size of Great Britain, Queensland is a state of vast spaces and varied landscapes. When that significant land mass is combined with some of the strongest wind and solar resources in the world, it creates plenty of opportunities for large-scale renewable energy projects. 

These resources can provide the basis for industries powered by cheaper, cleaner energy, and reduce the state’s reliance on international fossil fuel supply chains. 

They can also be used to establish the state as a reliable supplier of renewable energy to countries that lack these resources – with all Queenslanders set to benefit from the jobs and investment this will generate. 

Good day, sunshine 

To create electricity, solar panels need direct sunlight – so the more sun that hits your panels, the more electricity that will be produced.

With a total land size of 1.73 million square kilometres, around 263 days of sunshine each year, and an average of 12 hours of sunshine per day, Queensland receives particularly high levels of solar exposure – an average of 20 megajoules per square metre. 

Better yet, Queensland’s sunniest spots tend to be located close to existing network infrastructure. For this reason, 40 solar farms are already operational across Queensland as of September 2023, representing 3,268 megawatts (MW) of generation. 

Another three solar farms (representing 128 MW of generation) are under construction, and another 86 (totalling 22,000 MW) have already been proposed. 

As well as large-scale farms, one in three homes in Queensland now have solar panels -  the highest rate of household rooftop solar installation in Australia.

Collectively, at around 5,000 MW, the energy produced by 830,000+ rooftops across Queensland is already the largest renewable generator in the state. 

Blowin’ in the wind 

Wind energy is produced by wind turbines. The speed of the wind that passes through the turbine’s blades is critical – high wind speeds mean more efficient and lower cost power generation. That’s why turbines are usually grouped together in farms located in high and consistently windy areas, where wind resources are strongest. 

Areas with high quality wind resources are beginning to be developed in Northern Queensland, particularly in the Hughenden region; in Central Queensland, west of Gladstone; and in the Southern Queensland region, along the Great Dividing Range. 

Five wind farms are currently operational in Queensland, representing 1,013 MW of generation; with another four under construction (1,626 MW) and 45 proposed (32,000 MW). 

This slate is highlighted by the 150-turbine Tarong West wind farm. If approved, Tarong West will become Australia’s largest publicly owned wind farm, and generate enough electricity to power 230,000 homes. 

The green light 

Another way Queensland can leverage its natural assets is through the production of clean, green hydrogen. 

Queensland has such an abundance of sunshine and wind that the state’s solar panels and wind turbines can sometimes generate more energy than the grid requires at any given time. 

This ‘excess’ energy can be used to power the process of electrolysis that produces green hydrogen, which doesn’t emit any greenhouse gases. 

Hydrogen is a versatile energy carrier that can be used for a range of applications, including powering heavy transport; powering refineries and other energy-intensive industrial facilities; and producing ammonia and fertilisers. Green hydrogen, then, can be used to reduce emissions from domestic industries that have proven difficult to decarbonise. 

Green hydrogen is also expected to be in particularly high demand in countries such as Japan, Singapore and Korea, where opportunities for domestic production are limited, opening new export opportunities for the state. 

The state’s close proximity to Asian markets is another advantage for Queensland, as well as the 21 world-class ports and existing export infrastructure already in place throughout the state. The process of liquifying green hydrogen for export is similar to the existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) export industry, in which Queensland is already well established.

There are more than 50 hydrogen projects currently underway across the state, including Stanwell’s Central Queensland renewable hydrogen (CQ-H2) project. The project includes a large-scale renewable hydrogen production facility at Aldoga, near Gladstone, a hydrogen transport facility (pipeline), and a liquefaction and shipping facility at the Port of Gladstone. 

The project is being developed in partnership with Iwatani Corporation, Kansai Electric Power Company, Keppel Infrastructure and Marubeni Corporation – exemplifying the international partnerships that green hydrogen production will enable as the world decarbonises. 

How will these natural resources be coordinated? 

To help realise the state’s potential as a renewable energy superpower, the Queensland Government has released the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan (QEJP).

The Plan sets ambitious targets for 70 per cent of Queensland’s energy to come from renewable resources by 2032, and 80 per cent by 2035, with 90 per cent of the state’s emissions from the energy industry to be cut as a result. 

According to the Plan, approximately 12 gigawatts (GW) of new large-scale wind and 10 GW of new large-scale solar will need to be developed in Queensland by 2035. This represents between 2,000 to 3,000 potential wind turbines, and 36 million solar panels. 

These new wind and solar assets – as well as a range of other new assets to allow Queensland to reliably generate, store and transport clean energy, including two major pumped hydro projects – will be connected by a Queensland SuperGrid that will include approximately 2,000 kilometres of new backbone infrastructure. 

Much of this new generation and infrastructure will be found in Queensland Renewable Energy Zones (QREZs) – areas where high quality renewable resources, such as strong wind and abundant sunshine, will be developed in a coordinated way to achieve Queensland’s targets. 

Ultimately, a cleaner energy system that takes advantage of the natural resources available across Queensland will be a platform for accelerating economic growth and unlocking new opportunities – and Queensland is ready to embrace those opportunities, as it takes the lead in Australia’s energy transformation.