UK offshore wind pipeline surges to 86 GW, up 60% on year

The UK's pipeline of offshore wind projects now stands at 86 GW, more than eight times current operational capacity, sector association RenewableUK said March 22.

The UK government has set a target of 40 GW installed by 2030, up from 10.5 GW today. Only China has more operational offshore wind capacity at 24 GW.

The UK's 86-GW pipeline "represents a 60% increase over the past 12 months, driven mainly by massive leasing round announcements by The Crown Estate (8 GW) and Crown Estate Scotland (25 GW)," RenewableUK said.

The pipeline includes projects which are fully operational, under construction, consented, in the planning system or being developed for submission into planning.

The statistics, compiled for RenewableUK's latest EnergyPulse report, also show the total global offshore wind pipeline has reached 517 GW, up 200 GW year on year.

While leading globally in operational capacity, China is behind the UK in terms of development with a pipeline of 75 GW. Then comes the US with 48 GW in its pipeline, but with very little operational.

The report also showed that the average turbine capacity would increase from 8-9 MW this year to 14-15 MW by 2025.

S&P Global Commodity Insights assessed the UK offshore wind capture price at GBP198.25/MWh March 21, up from GBP51.49/MWh exactly a year ago.

In its most recent long-term power forecast published in December, S&P Global saw UK offshore wind capture prices averaging GBP66/MWh in 2025 before declining to GBP42/MWh in 2030.