UK Leads Europe's Offshore Wind Boom

The recent study by RenewableUK highlights significant progress and future potential in offshore wind energy both in Europe and globally. Here are the key takeaways:

Current Operational Capacities:

• UK: Leads Europe with 14.7 GW
• Germany: Second in Europe with 8.3 GW
• Netherlands: Third in Europe with 3.7 GW
• Denmark: Fourth in Europe with 2.7 GW

On a global level, China came out on top, having reached 36.7 GW during the period the report tracked from June 2023 to this month.

The recent surge in global offshore wind operational capacity, which has increased by 21% from 61.5 GW to 75 GW over the past year, highlights the accelerating growth of renewable energy sources. This trend is expected to continue, with predictions suggesting that global offshore wind capacity could nearly quadruple to 277 GW by the end of 2030.

This growth is driven by significant project pipelines in several countries, particularly China, the UK, and the US:

• China has the world’s largest project pipeline at 227 GW
• Followed by the UK with a pipeline of 96 GW
• The US has the third largest pipeline of 94 GW

In the UK, 15.8 GW of offshore wind capacity was currently in the planning system awaiting approval, the “highest amount ever in planning (in the UK) at one time”, the report found. Additionally, 10.8 GW of new UK offshore wind capacity is eligible for this year’s contracts for difference auction known as AR6.

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