UK to hit 23.2 GW of offshore wind by 2025 - GlobalData

The UK is projected to boost its offshore wind power capacity to 23.2 GW by 2025 from 4.5 GW in 2014 and thus remain the sector leader, research and consulting firm GlobalData said Wednesday.

The UK’s offshore wind capacity will expand at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 30.5% by that year. Its share of global offshore capacity will decrease to 30.6% by 2025 from 51.3%, according to GlobalData.

Denmark’s market presence is seen to decline to 4.4% from 14.5%, while Germany’s share will grow to 16.1% from 11.9%. Meanwhile, the US and China will expand their offshore wind activities, says Harshavardhan Reddy Nagatham, GlobalData’s analyst covering power.

The UK’s growth in the field has so far been attributed to the solid policy support and aggressive targets. However, presently there is uncertainty within the sector because the government is taking longer than expected to decide on the availability of support for such projects.

“Despite the higher costs of offshore wind compared to onshore, the government continues to support the former with contracts for difference [CfD], with the aim of achieving lower generation costs in the long term and the 18 GW installation target,” Nagatham commented.

German engineering major Siemens AG (ETR:SIE) was the indisputable leader in the UK’s offshore wind market in 2014, with its turbine powering about 76.2% of the country’s cumulative capacity. Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems A/S (CPH:VWS) was second with a 19.9% share, GlobalData said.

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