UK Needs 265% Increase In Offshore Windfarms To Meet Targets

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Industrial giant ABB has warned the UK government that it will need to install 24 additional offshore windfarms in the next seven years if it wants to meet the renewables targets that it has set itself before 2030. The 24 new windfarms, with average capacity of 1.5 GW, will be required to expand the UK’s offshore wind power capacity by the 265% rise that ABB has calculated will be needed for the UK to reach its 50 GW offshore wind target. Currently, the UK generates 13.7 GW through offshore wind. If the UK succeeds, then electricity generated from offshore wind will jump from 18 percent to 62 percent of the country’s total capacity.

“In order to reach the UK’s ambitious targets, we must collectively find ways to bring down the cost of developing new wind farms, speed up the planning and permitting processes, secure the supply chain and deliver network infrastructure upgrades to support the massive growth in power flows and connections to the grid,” said Per Erik Holsten, Head of ABB Energy Industries for Northern Europe. “If we get this right, we could help the UK resolve the current energy pricing crisis and significantly grow the UK’s export capability, all the while delivering a cleaner form of electricity to industry and consumers.”

Electricity generated from all wind sources currently accounts for almost a third (32.4 percent) of the UK’s total electricity generation, having outpaced gas for the first time ever during the first quarter of this year. Wind power is one of the most cost-effective sources of energy, and is presently more than 50 percent cheaper than electricity produced from gas. According to the new report, by 2030, the UK’s offshore wind sector is set to support more than 66,000 additional jobs.

The UK Government announced a net zero plan at the end of March. The plan, called Powering Up Britain, includes a series of policy pledges to accelerate the deployment of offshore wind in order to boost the country’s energy security, reduce household bills, and maintain its position in achieving net zero. Powering Up Britain features £160 million in funding to kick start the infrastructure investment needed to deliver the increase in floating offshore wind farms.

ABB, who claims to be the largest supplier of electrical components to the wind industry globally, carried out the research for Global Wind Day 2023, which was on June 15. The company is currently involved in seven offshore projects across the UK, which, when completed, will increase offshore wind power capacity by 9 GW. These projects include the world’s largest wind farm at Dogger Bank, 130 km off the northeast coast of England.