Official Media Releases from Responsible Future (Illawarra Chapter)
Here you’ll find official media releases from Responsible Future (Illawarra Chapter) Inc., a volunteer, community-led organisation. These releases provide comprehensive insights into our latest initiatives, positions on key issues and organisational updates.
They are an important source of information about our ongoing efforts, perspectives and advocacy as we contribute to informed discussion and decision-making around sustainable development and renewable energy policy in the Illawarra, as well as assist other community groups in their fight against offshore wind development.
Other Media Releases About Offshore Wind
Other media releases provide commentary, analysis and updates on offshore wind developments, policy and community impacts across Australia and internationally.
Through these statements, we contribute to informed public discussion by highlighting emerging issues, sharing community perspectives and examining the environmental, economic and social implications of offshore wind projects. Our aim is to promote transparency, accountability and evidence-based decision-making in the transition to renewable energy.
Responsible Future’s Media Presence
In a short time, Responsible Future (Illawarra Chapter) Inc. has established itself as a respected and growing voice in the media landscape, contributing to important conversations at both regional and national levels across Australia.
This section features articles, interviews, opinion pieces, and news stories that reflect our increasing influence and active contribution to public discussion on renewable energy, sustainable development, and community advocacy in the Illawarra and throughout Australia. Through these media engagements, we continue to raise awareness, share informed perspectives, represent the interests of local communities, and support other communities facing similar challenges as they work towards a responsible and sustainable future.
We have been featured across a wide range of national, regional, and community media outlets, including:
• Sky News
• 2GB
• ABC News
• Illawarra Mercury
• The Daily Telegraph
• The Australian
• Community newspapers
• Podcasts and radio interviews
This growing media presence reflects the increasing relevance of our work and the importance of community voices in shaping Australia’s renewable energy future.
Follow our journey as our message continues to reach audiences across the Illawarra, Australia, and beyond.
RFI Member Villified At Senate Inquiry
RFI’s Alex O’Brien on 2GB – Senate Inquiry into Climate Integrity
National Spotlight On Offshore Microplastics
Recent Survey off the Illawarra-Cronulla Coastline
Meeting with Hon. Peter Dutton MP
Senate Inquiry Announced into Offshore Wind Consultation Processes
NSW Doesn’t Need Offshore Wind — Even AEMO and CSIRO Agree
22 December 2025
This month, Australia’s two most influential energy authorities — AEMO and CSIRO — are now aligned on a critical point for New South Wales:
Offshore wind is expensive, slow to deliver, and not required for NSW to meet energy or emissions targets.
What the modelling shows:
- AEMO’s Draft 2026 Integrated System Plan (ISP) shows offshore wind absent from the optimal development path for NSW, including the Illawarra and the Hunter
- Offshore wind appears only in Victoria because it is legislated, not because it is the lowest-cost or fastest option
- In NSW, AEMO’s modelling shows no offshore wind projects, no transmission reliance, and no system dependency
- CSIRO’s Draft GenCost 2025–26confirms:
- Solar and onshore wind remain the lowest-cost electricity sources through to 2050
- Offshore wind is significantly more expensive
- Offshore wind does not feature among the most economic technologies in Australia’s future generation mix
- CSIRO also notes that its modelling does not assess whether the scale of renewables required by 2030 is realistically achievable — a critical caveat often overlooked in public debate.
Put simply: Our coastline is being targeted for a large-scale industrial rollout that the national energy system does not need — and cannot justify on cost grounds.
Read more in the Australian Financial Review (AFR)
Notably, concerns about offshore wind were raised in 2022 by AEMO and the Australian Energy Council.
Oceanex: Australia’s “Pioneer” OffshoreWind Developer to Wind Up
Offshore wind developer Oceanex pictured with Newcastle and Illawarra Labor MPs.
Pictured: Sharon Claydon MP, Oceanex CEO Andy Evans, Alison Byrnes MP, and Oceanex COO Emily Scivetti.
December 2025
Oceanex, long promoted as Australia’s offshore wind “pioneer” and a key proponent for the Illawarra offshore wind zone, will now wind up operations as per Andy Evans’ latest LinkedIn post.
Despite years of getting a lot of positive media coverage, it is clear the company’s position was far more fragile than the public narrative suggested.
These projects were always:
- Economically challenging
- Dependent on optimistic assumptions about approvals, financing and future power prices
- Vulnerable to rising costs, delays and investor risk
It was only a couple of months ago that Andy was at UOW actively promoting offshore wind — even appearing on the RenewEconomy podcast, where the hosts made it clear they did not share his positive view on the technology.
From our perspective, many of Oceanex’s public claims did not reflect the real complexity or risk profile of offshore wind. That gap became increasingly apparent over time.
Public commentary has indicated that Oceanex’s business model focused on early-stage development and securing approvals, before selling substantial stakes in projects to larger developers such as Equinor — a structure that could result in significant multi-million-dollar returns for a short term involvement.
While neither the developer nor the government has publicly confirmed these figures, nor released financial modelling for independent scrutiny, these claims highlight the strong financial incentives for companies like Oceanex to promote offshore wind’s “commercial viability” and broader community benefits. This underscores the importance of transparency around cost and revenue modelling. Setting up a locally based company to do the legwork — engaging with communities and government — before on-selling the project to a foreign developer is a common industry strategy and one Oceanex replicated with its Star of the South Project. We do not believe this approach builds confidence or trust within the community. Instead it highlights the opportunistic nature of these companies to turn quick profits and leave communities to deal with the consequences.
| We Exposed Oceanex’s Withdrawal a Year Ago |
| Oceanex had quietly withdrawn from the Illawarra zone in July 2024, a fact that would not have become public without RFI’s efforts in October 2024. Once our research team discovered they had withdrawn, we made it national news and implemented a coordinated campaign, which saw the issue reach the front page of The Telegraph on the same day Minister Bowen visited the Illawarra. |
Daily Telegraph Focus on Offshore Wind
| If one of the most heavily promoted offshore wind developers in Australia cannot make the numbers work, the broader offshore wind rollout warrants serious, independent scrutiny. Questions should be asked of the offshore infrastructure regulator about how they are assessing the financial viability of these companies. This is reality catching up and a reminder of why balanced, critical reporting matters. Asking an interviewee how much they stand to gain from a project would give the public essential context to judge potential bias in their views on offshore wind. It’s no different to a property developer talking up the economic benefits of a new development while standing to make millions from it. We have repeatedly offered local media access to independent experts across engineering, nuclear energy, batteries, hydrogen and conservation. Unfortunately, these offers have often been declined by select outlets. In one case, a media outlet advised that it would only engage “experts” from the University of Wollongong as its sole “independent expert” on offshore wind, while also receiving support from the university. In another instance, it is publicly disclosed that the owner of another media outlet holds significant investments in renewable energy. As a result, community voices and genuinely independent expertise can struggle to gain visibility locally. While this is disappointing, we hope now that the Illawarra offshore wind project has faltered, there will be an opportunity for those select outlets to reflect on the commentary of some of these widely cited “experts” and to broaden the range of voices considered credible. This is particularly important given that even renewable-only advocates have begun to question the viability of offshore wind and green hydrogen in Australia. We also recognise that the debate has been heated and that media outlets have faced significant public pressure. However, providing fair, balanced and transparent reporting remains vital — especially on issues of such long-term economic, environmental and community importance. This is a challenge we continue to engage with every day, and one we will not walk away from. |
Coalition vows to scrap Illawarra wind zone if elected to government
Bulli & Clifton Times – 17/6/24
Coverage of David Littleproud’s Illawarra visit and the commitments that the Coalition will prevent wind farms being built off the coast of the Illawarra if it wins the next federal election.
National Party leader David Littleproud promises to scrap NSW offshore wind zones in Labor heartland
ABC News – 17/6/24
The Coalition will stop wind farms being built off the NSW coast in the Illawarra and Port Stephens if it wins the next federal election. During a visit to Wollongong, National Party leader David Littleproud also ruled out building a nuclear power plant to power the Port Kembla Steelworks as it transitions away from coal and gas.
Wollongong’s wind era powers up despite blowback from opponents
SMH – 15/6/24
Opponents including Responsible Future have vowed to maintain oppostion to the newly declared Illawarra offshore wind zone announced by Energy Minister Chris Bowen despite being smaller and further from shore than earlier proposed.
Controversial wind farm given green light
7 News Australia – 15/6/24
Illawarra community vows this is the beginning of the beginning iof the fight against the Illawarra Offshore Wind proposal now that the zone has been declared by Minister Chris Bowen.
Campaign escalates against proposed Illawarra wind turbines as new community group takes the lead
The Bugle – 29/4/24
Coverage of Responsible Future as a recently established community advocacy group as the community’s apprehensions about the magnitude and impact of this project, along with the significant risks posed to the Illawarra and its environment, persist.
Response to David Littleproud’s Announcement, National Party for the Scrapping of Offshore Windfarms
ABC Illawarra – 23/4/24
The views of Responsible Future were gained in response to the announcement that the National Party would scrap offshore wind proposals if in power. Alex O’Brien expressed a range of concerns including the rushed nature of the proposal. The segment starts from 1 hours 45 mins.
Response to Push for More Renewables to Counter Climate Change and Adverse Weather
WIN News Illawarra – 19/4/24
In response to Responsible Future’s distribution of 30,000 flyers to build community awareness of the proposal, community Group Good for the Gong attempt to justify renewables are needed to deal with climate change.
Illawarra Response to Victorian/ SA Zoning Reduction
ABC Illawarra – 7/3/24
The views of Responsible Future were gained in response to the 80% decrease in the offshore wind zone declared in Victoria and SA. Alex O’Brien clearly represents our concerns. The segment starts from 2 hours 8 mins.
Pre-Association Media Coverage on our Opposition to the Proposed Offshore Wind Project
Explore how the media documented the Illawarra community’s response to proposed offshore wind developments prior to the formation of Responsible Future (Illawarra Chapter) Inc.
This collection features a range of media coverage, including radio interviews, news reports, opinion pieces and community discussions that captured local concerns and perspectives during the period leading up to our organisation’s establishment. Together, these articles and broadcasts provide valuable insight into the issues that mobilised residents and helped lay the foundation for a united, community-led, volunteer movement committed to protecting the Illawarra’s environment, economy and way of life.
The movement against offshore wind in the Illawarra continues to show strength
WIN News Illawarra – 19/1/24
Interview featuring Alex O’Brien and Amanda De Lore representing the Illawarra community opposing the proposal and questioning how the turbines coexist with yacht racing.
NSW ports ‘can be panacea’ to Victoria’s offshore wind woes
The Australian – 17/1/24
With approval for a Victorian port to be used for offshore wind infrastructure rejected, Port Kembla is proposed as an alternative.
Resident drama with the proposed offshore wind farms in the Illawarra
2GB – 16/1/24
Hear the Drama about the proposed offshore windfarms in the Illawarra in this interview by Chris O’Keefe with Neryl East from the Illawarra.
Sunday Night Bill Crews with Susie Elelman January 14 2024
2GB – 14/1/24
Hear an extended discussion led by Susie Elelman with Neryl East about the Illawarra proposal also taking well informed questions from callers live. The segment starts from 4:45min from the start.
Chris Kenny speaks to protesters at ‘Reckless Renewables’ rally
Sky News – 30/11/23
Sky News host Chris Kenny attended the ‘Reckless Renewables’ rally in Sydney on Thursday to speak with protesters angry at Australia’s push to renewables.
Community pushback against renewable energy projects could see Australia miss its emissions targets and climate goals
ABC – 28/11/23
Concerns about industrialisation of the ocean are expressed by Grant Drinkwater of the Illawarra.
Plans for offshore wind farm on the Illawarra coast attracts controversy
A Current Affair – 11/23
A push for clean energy has triggered a raft of allegations of dirty tricks in the Illawarra.
Risky Experiment Offshore Wind Projects
2GB – 20/11/23
The Illawarra proposal is mentioned by Ben Fordham as he questions Australia’s commitment to offshore wind, with the cost setbacks of overseas wind projects.
Last chance’ – Locals have their say on offshore wind farm
2GB – 15/11/23
Ben Fordham interviews a Kiama farmer.
A rally in opposition to offshore wind projects in the Illawarra saw passionate speeches and a paddle out
WIN News Illawarra – 30/10/23
Coverage of the Illawarra rally and speeches and paddleout opposing the offshore proposal.
Hunter, Illawarra surfers paddle out against NSW offshore wind zone plans
2GB – 15/11/23
Article of the Illawarra and Hunter paddleout and rally in Wollongong opposing the proposal.
A company proposing to build and operate wind turbines off the Illawarra’s coast has withdrawn its application and plans, just hours after submitting them
WIN News Illawarra – 8/11/23
Bluefloat withdrawal of their plans for the Illawarra.
Rally Against Wind Farm Generates Major Public Support
Illawarra Mercury – 29/10/23
Thousands of people in attendance at the Wollongong rally.
Wollongong locals adamant a planned wind farm off their coast should not go ahead
7News Sydney – 29/10/23
A battle is brewing in Wollongong, with locals gathering adamant a planned wind farm off their coast should not go ahead.
A coalition’s begun against offshore windfarms being built in the Illawarra, as opponents line up to fight any proposal
WIN News Illawarra – 4/10/23
An interview featuring Grant Drinkwater.