According to a new report from the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), 418 offshore turbines came online in 2013 in Europe, making a record 1,567 MW of new capacity. This is one-third more than the capacity installed in 2012 and makes a new total of 6,562 MW of offshore wind power – enough to provide 0.7% of the European Union's electricity.
However, EWEA says a closer look at what happened reveals a slow-down during the year: Two-thirds of the new capacity came online in the first six months. With 11 projects now under construction, down from 14 this time last year, the association says market and regulatory stability is critical to bringing forward the 22 GW of consented projects across Europe.
‘The unclear political support for offshore wind energy – especially in key offshore wind markets like the U.K. and Germany – has led to delays to planned projects and fewer new projects being launched," says Justin Wilkes, EWEA's deputy CEO. "This means installations are likely to plateau until 2015, followed by a decline as from 2016."
‘An ambitious decision on a 2030 renewable energy target by the heads of state in March would be the right signal to send to the offshore wind sector that Europe will develop its massive offshore wind potential for green growth, jobs, industrialization, technological leadership and CO2 reductions," Wilkes adds.
According to EWEA's report, in 2013, Siemens was the leading turbine supplier to the European offshore industry (69%), DONG Energy the leading developer (48%), and Bladt the leading substructure supplier (37%), as they were in 2012.
The full report is available here.
