Five reasons the North Sea will help the UK transition to clean energy

As the UK moves away from fossil fuels and towards the transition to clean energy, increasing generation from renewable sources is crucial to power our homes and businesses with more clean, affordable and secure energy. Find out why the North Sea is seen as the ‘engine room’ of the UK’s energy transition.

1. It’s the UK’s biggest source of offshore wind

The North Sea is one of the UK’s best sources of consistent?offshore wind energy?as the area is extremely windy with a relatively shallow sea, which makes it a perfect location for offshore wind farms.

Offshore wind will play a key role in the transition to clean energy and helping the UK to achieve?net zero?carbon emissions by 2050. That’s why the UK government?has set an ambition for 50GW of offshore wind power generation?by 2030, which is?enough to power nearly every home in the country.?By 2030 the North Sea alone could provide up to 120GW of offshore wind generation – enough to power over 120 million homes.

2. It’s home to the world’s largest offshore wind farm

The North Sea is already home to the world’s largest offshore wind farm –Dogger Bank?–?the first phase of which we connected to the UK’s?electricity transmission network?in 2023. When all three phases have been completed in 2026, its 3.6GW output will be enough to power six million homes with clean energy – and each turbine will save the equivalent of 9,000 vehicles’ emissions in a year.

Previously the largest offshore wind farms were Hornsea 1 and Hornsea 2, which are also located in the North Sea.

3. It’s already helping us to share clean power from other countries

In addition to being the home to large offshore windfarms, deep below the surface of the North Sea lies other sources of clean, renewable energy – our interconnectors.

Interconnectors are high voltage cables used to connect the electricity systems of neighbouring countries, allowing us to trade excess power – such as renewable energy created by the sun, wind and water – between different countries.

National Grid operates six interconnectors; four of which run below the North Sea to Belgium, The Netherlands, Denmark and Norway, with two crossing the English Channel to France.

4. It will be home to the next generation of clean energy technology

Given the huge increase in offshore wind capacity needed to help achieve net zero, the next generation of interconnection will see offshore wind and interconnectors working together as a combined asset, creating an offshore hub for green energy. These are known as Offshore Hybrid Assets (OHAs).

The North Sea could also be the location for the world’s first ‘energy island’ in the future – these are essentially ‘offshore power plants’ that gather renewable electricity from hundreds of nearby wind turbines, before distributing it to several nations via OHAs and interconnectors.

5. Energy produced and shared across the North Sea strengthens our security of supply?

From wind farms producing large volumes of renewable energy to interconnectors providing access to clean electricity when we need it, developments in the North Sea will help strengthen both the UK’s and Europe’s energy security and contribute to the energy mix that will help keep our energy supplies flexible and reliable.

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> Find out more about the North Sea’s potential as a clean energy powerhouse