The declaration also aims to provide greater certainty about how and where projects will be developed across Victoria – but it does not mean that property owners are forced to sign up to a renewable energy project on their land.
Some areas proposed for a section of the south-west zone have not been declared, with VicGrid chief executive Alistair Parker saying more work was required on its suitability.
“Around the Dundas Tablelands, near Balmoral, we’ve heard a lot from the local community about agricultural uses, about the nature of the land and so on, and so we’ve just taken a break on that. We think we need to do a lot more work there to understand it better, so it’s not been declared,” he said.
“We just couldn’t declare it at this stage. We’ve had such strong feedback from the local community on environmental factors, agricultural uses, et cetera, so no, it’s definitely not been declared, but we do want to continue to get to know people in that area and also we will be working over the next little while on the next Victorian Transmission Plan.”
The east section of the western zone, in the Northern Grampians Shire, has been significantly reduced.
“We’ve done two things really as we finalised the zones – one is we’ve snapped the boundaries, for example, roads, boundary properties, et cetera, whereas previously it had just been more of a vague line across the landscape,” Mr Parker said.
“And we’ve also removed some areas because there’s high-environmental factors or unsuitable agriculture and so on. So we’ve really tried to listen to people.”
However, Northern Grampians Shire Council leaders believe while the reduction in size of the eastern section of the western REZ went some of the way to address their concerns, it still fell short of council’s resolved position.
The council last year formally opposed the originally proposed Grampians Wimmera REZ.
Monitoring closely
Northern Grampians deputy mayor Justine Hide said the council had invested considerable time and resources into monitoring and responding to the government’s transition to renewable energy.
“The eastern section has been revised to increase distance from culturally significant landscapes and remove valuable conservation reserves and areas along the Wimmera River, however council is still concerned that many areas of agricultural importance remain within the REZ,” she said.
Cr Hide said she understood renewable energy and transmission line projects were highly emotive for many residents, particularly those directly impacted.
“We are closely following the situation between VicGrid representatives and landowners in the shire’s farming corridor as two transmission line projects – VNI West and Western Renewables Link – continue to unfold,” she said.
“A key difference between solar, wind and battery projects and the State Government’s transmission line projects centres around landowner consent.”
Mr Parker said transmission lines were different to the REZs.
“Where the transmission lines are being developed for the main system, so for example VNI West or Western Renewable Link, as a last resort, the government retains the power for compulsory acquisition,” he said.
“But certainly VicGrid’s message really strongly is always we want to exhaust ourselves trying to reach a voluntary agreement with people, and we do see in Victoria and the rest of Australia but also worldwide, people take time to decide to sign up for these voluntary agreements, but most people eventually do.”
Yarriambiack Mayor Andrew McLean welcomed the greater clarity but emphasised the importance of clear planning frameworks and community certainty.
“It is critical that prospecting and project development outside of the Renewable Energy Zones does not continue, as this is causing significant concern within our communities,” Cr McLean said.
He said priority must be given to establishing clear limits on renewable energy capacity within each zone.
“We need the setting of limits on how much new renewable energy generation can connect to the network within each zone to be completed as a matter of urgency,” Cr McLean said.
“With the western REZ covering a significant geographical area, it is also important the community clearly understands the government’s intention is not to develop the entire zone with wind turbines.”
Council also noted uncertainty regarding existing and proposed projects in relation to the newly declared zone boundaries.
“The declaration indicates the Campbells Bridge Wind Farm is predominantly outside the eastern section of the western REZ, and at this stage we are unclear what this means for the project,” Cr McLean said.
“As a council, we neither support nor oppose renewable energy projects. We respect the rights of landholders to make decisions regarding their land.
“Our priority is ensuring community voices are heard and local concerns are properly addressed as part of the planning and development process.”
Mr Parker said a small proportion of the land in each zone would be needed for renewable development, with less than one per cent of Victoria’s total land area required for physical infrastructure such as wind turbines, solar panels and access roads.
He said declaration of zones would enable VicGrid to set clearer rules around how projects gain access to the grid, including expectations for how they engaged with communities and deliver benefits.
The declared zones follow a statewide land-use assessment and more than two years of consultation with regional communities and stakeholders, landholders, agriculture stakeholders, traditional owners and the energy industry.
Information sessions
VicGrid will host community information sessions to talk about the Western REZ and the VNI West project at Stawell Entertainment Centre on June 15 and 16.
It will also host community drop-in sessions to talk about the south west REZ on June 16 at Pigeon Ponds Hall and June 17 at Harrow Hall.
VicGrid has also released for consultation draft Victorian Transmission Plan guidelines, setting out the proposed approach for the next Victorian Transmission Plan in 2027, which will take a 25-year view of the state’s transmission and renewable energy generation needs.
The entire June 3, 2026 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!
