Oliver Joy, spokesman for the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), responded to UK Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Amber Rudd’s speech at the Global Offshore Conference 2015 in London, where she said that an announcement on the second CfD auction is due soon.
Joy said: “With projects in the pipeline, the UK government has a chance to further cement the country’s position as the dominant force in this sector. But it is important that the UK does not jeopardise its front runner status.
“Any changes to offshore wind support must be carefully considered and include an appropriate lead-time to ensure that investors are not left out in the cold. Hasty changes are not acceptable and cannot be considered the norm. Furthermore, the changes to support for onshore wind must not be a model for offshore.
“Costs in offshore wind are coming down and the industry is committed to reducing costs in the coming years. It is expected that offshore wind will be cost competitive with conventional sources of energy within a decade. But political will and investor certainty are crucial elements as the industry strives to achieve these goals. We are in no doubt that offshore wind will have a central role in Europe meeting its decarbonisation goals toward 2050.”
Image: London Array (Illustration)