Offshore Wind to Meet 10 Pct of UK Electricity Demand by 2020

The Crown Estate has published two reports at this year’s Global Offshore Wind conference, painting a picture of an industry maturing and on course to double its capacity by 2020 to 10 GW or more – around 10 per cent of the UK’s electricity demand.

‘Offshore wind operational report 2014‘ highlights the sectors continuing growth while ‘Sharing lessons learned and good practice in offshore transmission‘ sets out a pathway to cost reduction which will help unlock the sector’s potential.

Offshore wind operational report 2014

Commenting in the report, the Rt Hon Ed Davey MP, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change said: “The UK is the number one country in the world for offshore wind, supporting green jobs and growth as well as strengthening our energy security. We have already attracted over £30 billion worth of investment in renewable technologies since 2010. Our ambitious electricity market reforms provide investors with the long-term certainty they need.”

Huub den Rooijen, Head of Offshore Wind at The Crown Estate said: “There have been a number of significant milestones in 2014 for offshore wind including a total of £750 million industry investment announced. With around 1465 wind turbines in operation or under construction and nearly 4 GW in operation it is fair to say the industry is coming of age. The certainty afforded by the conclusion of Electricity Market Reform and continued cost reduction and investment means that offshore wind is on course to provide around 10 per cent of the UK’s electricity demand by 2020.”

Huub den Rooijen said: “Given the volume of offshore wind capacity already connected and the expected future capacity, there is a valuable opportunity to better understand the challenges faced on offshore transmission projects. By taking a more collaborative approach industry can capture this knowledge for the benefit of future projects as a way of reducing costs and risk.”