EUROPE’s offshore wind capacity rose by 18% last year – 85% of it accounted for by the UK and Germany – according to a new report.
WindEurope said it followed the installation of 2.6GW of new offshore capacity in 2018, which saw 15 new offshore wind farms go on line.
Europe’s 105 wind farms across 11 countries have a total capacity of 18.5GW – a tenth of the total wind energy capacity across the continent with the remainder onshore. It connected 409 new offshore turbines to the grid over 18 projects last year and now has total installed capacity corresponding to 4543 grid-connected wind turbines.
Separately, 12 new offshore wind projects reached Final Decision Investment (FID) in 2018, while investments in new assets amounted to €10.3bn (£9.05bn). This financed 4.2GW of additional capacity, which will come on line in the coming years.
Three Scottish developments in the North Sea saw a total of 51 offshore turbines connected last year. The Beatrice 2 wind farm in the Moray Firth, European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC) off the coast of Aberdeenshire and Kincardine Pilot – a demonstration project in the same area – have a total capacity of 368.2MW.
WindEurope CEO, Giles Dickson, said: “Offshore wind now represents 2% of all the electricity consumed in Europe. And with a big pipeline of projects under construction and development, this number will rise significantly.
“The technology keeps developing. The turbines keep getting bigger. And the costs keep falling. It’s now no more expensive to build offshore wind than it is to build coal or gas plants. And it’s a good deal cheaper than new nuclear.”
He added that while more governments were recognising the merits of offshore wind, some were underperforming: “Sweden is not building any offshore wind despite great potential. Germany has only a modest target for 2030. And the ‘gamma minus’ performer is France which still has no offshore wind farms nor is it clear when they will have.
“These countries have a chance to put things right this year with their national energy and climate plans - they should grab it with two hands.”
Stephanie Conesa, policy manager at Scottish Renewables, said: “Scotland is home to around a quarter of Europe’s offshore wind resource and we are now starting to build out projects which will harness this potential. Scotland is also emerging as an international centre of offshore wind innovation, and the economic impact of these projects is already being felt in ports like Nigg and Wick and coastal towns including Campbeltown and Stornoway, which are seeing investment, development and jobs.”
Gina Hanrahan, head of policy at WWF Scotland added: “Renewables are clearly working and it’s great to see more capacity coming online across Europe. Here in Scotland the offshore wind sector is already playing an important part in cutting climate emissions, creating jobs and keeping the lights on.”
Caroline Rance, Friends of the Earth Scotland climate and energy campaigner, said: "The growth in wind power is a real renewable energy success story. Every Gigawatt added in clean, reliable green energy means that more polluting fossil fuels can be left in the ground.
"Scotland has made great strides in developing renewable energy, as strong targets and support from government have driven innovation. As we transition away from fossil fuels, we need to ensure this wind energy revolution is delivering good quality jobs in Scotland, including in manufacturing.
"With Scotland's natural advantages, we are well placed to capitalise on this growth and share our expertise with the world.
“As the climate crisis worsens, these positive stories of renewables growing from strength to strength remind us what can be done and take us a step closer to a fossil fuel free Europe.”
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