Program

Kickstart your day at the Australian Wind Industry Forum. Arrive early, grab a coffee, network with your industry leaders and hear the latest innovations before the sessions begin.

Visit the registration desk to collect your name badge before heading into your first session of the day.

Join us to officially open the Forum. The opening will include an acknowledgement of country and messages from the CEC. We look forward to welcoming you all to the event.

Join us and Minister Lily D'Ambrosio for a conversation on the future of wind energy in Australia, exploring the challenges, opportunities and policies shaping the future of the sector.

Join us and Shadow Minister David Davis for a conversation on how he sees the future of wind energy in Australia and a discussion on the energy policies the Liberal party want to implement if elected at the end of the year.

This opening panel features leaders from Envision Energy, the Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner, SEC Victoria and Southerly Ten. The panelists will explore the current state of onshore and offshore wind energy, the roadmap for the future, as well the domestic and international market opportunities and policy changes shaping 2026 and beyond.

Take a break and catch up with your peers over some morning tea.

As the Australian wind industry scales to meet the demands of the energy transition, developers, investors and analysts must contend with a deepening set of uncertainties, from resource variability and market volatility to the evolving technical and commercial standards that will define project success in the decade ahead.

This session examines how the industry can better anticipate, quantify and manage uncertainty across the project lifecycle. Presentations will explore optimal wind/BESS hybrid sizing, strategies for navigating resource drought and market volatility in investment decisions, emerging questions shaping wind energy analysis, and a forward-looking vision for best-practice resource and energy assessments by 2030 and beyond.

Thank you to our session partner:

Birds and bats remain one of the most significant environmental challenges facing wind energy development in Australia, with implications for project approvals, operational curtailment and long-term licence to operate. This session will explore how the industry can achieve better biodiversity outcomes while also enabling faster approvals and greater regulatory certainty. It will highlight how smarter data, emerging technology, and earlier engagement can help the Australian wind sector manage wildlife risk with increased confidence and efficiency. 

Presentations will cover the draft Australian collision risk framework designed to standardise how bird and bat collision risks are assessed; early-stage biodiversity considerations that can reduce approval risks and curtailment costs; real-world efficacy data from the IdentiFlight avian anti-collision system across 15 wind farms on three continents; and innovative applications of thermal imaging and AI for bat collision risk assessment.

As Australia's wind energy pipeline grows, so does the complexity of connecting it to a grid undergoing rapid and fundamental change. This session addresses some of the most pressing technical and design challenges facing developers, engineers and network planners today.

Presentations will examine the design of next-generation transmission corridors to support high-wind renewable energy zones, a reframing of system strength discussions around system behaviour, the causes and consequences of voltage collapse in wind-heavy grids, and the practical deployment of integrated wind and BESS hybrid power plants.

Australia's offshore wind sector holds enormous promise, but many steps remain before we see projects reaching final investment decision. This session explores the costs and conditions we need to see over the coming years, and the policy mechanisms to make it happen. 

Presentations will include insights on the work underway by the Victorian and Commonwealth governments to make projects financial, analysis of costs and the relative merits of Victorian offshore projects, and the policy conditions needed to deliver offshore wind in Australia.

Grab a bite to eat in the exhibition area.

The contractual frameworks underpinning wind energy projects are evolving rapidly, driven by growing project complexity, shifting market conditions and attracting finance in an increasingly competitive landscape. Presentations will cover the evolution of contract mechanisms and offtake agreements in the current market, collaborative approaches to portfolio transactions that support bankability, the shift from traditional EPC to multi-contract structures, and perspectives on making multi-contract delivery work in practice.

Thank you to our session partner:

Delivering wind energy projects that are genuinely welcomed by communities and ecosystems requires more than meeting minimum standards. This session explores the environmental, social and regulatory aspects of project performance, and what it takes to build wind farms that leave a lasting positive legacy. 

Presentations will examine how well-planned renewable energy projects can support regional housing and communities; the growing importance of social value as a driver of project success; the implications of strengthened biodiversity protection laws for wind development and climate goals; and emerging approaches to achieving greater transparency and certainty in delivering net biodiversity gain under the EPBC Act.

Wind energy technology continues to evolve at pace, with innovation driving improvements throughout wind farm design, construction and operations. This session brings together engineers and technical specialists to examine where meaningful gains can be found in turbine design, construction efficiency, grid integration and operational monitoring focusing on improvements being made and what the future could hold.

Presentations will assess the remaining optimisation potential in megawatt-scale wind turbine components, explore the structural and construction efficiencies offered by precast wind turbine footing systems, examine techno-commercial solutions for grid integration challenges in modern wind farms, and how Structural Health Monitoring can improve economics and environmental performance.

Offshore wind development does not happen in isolation. It is guided by communities, environments, landscapes and regulatory frameworks that must be carefully navigated to achieve durable and equitable outcomes. This session focuses on what is happening right now in offshore wind, bringing together planning, legal and local government perspectives to examine what is needed to get offshore wind right on the ground.

Presentations will explore how economic and demographic insights can be used to shape meaningful stakeholder engagement and social outcomes, the approvals landscape and the legal and local government dimensions that will shape how projects are received and progressed.

Take a break and catch up with your peers over some afternoon tea.

Securing finance for wind energy projects has never been more challenging. This session explores the commercial strategies, collaborative approaches and innovative financing models that are helping Australian wind projects reach FID.

Presentations will examine the pivotal role of partnerships for offtake, the role of innovation and collaboration for financial close, and the financing and ownership model behind Delburn Wind Farm – Victoria's first state-owned utility scale wind project. Together, these perspectives provide insight into how wind projects can remain investable and bankable amid ongoing market, policy and financing uncertainty.

From transmission cost inequities to land access negotiations, community benefit agreements and worksite safety, this session unpacks the practical pressure points that determine whether a project delivers – for developers, landowners, communities and the long-term social license of the industry.

Thank you to our session partner:

As Australia's wind fleet matures, the industry faces a growing need to manage project end-of-life responsibly, whether extending operational life, recycling components or decommissioning with care for communities and ecosystems. This session examines a range of approaches available and the lessons being learned in the field.

Presentations will explore how operational data can be used to safely and cost-effectively extend wind farm life, the recycling opportunities available for wind turbine components in the Australian market, a circular economy framework for approaching wind turbine decommissioning, and real-world environmental and social outcomes from the decommissioning of the Esperance wind farm.

Realising Australia's offshore wind ambitions will require not just investment and policy support, but a step change in technology, grid and supply chain capabilities. This session showcases the technical innovation and infrastructure development driving that transformation.  

Presentations will explore grid-forming technologies and their role in offshore wind integration, supply chain development and autonomous vessels, technology innovation and insurance, and how AI and other emerging technologies can reshape how offshore projects are built and maintained.

Finish out the day with networking and drinks.