New Report Says 10% of European Energy Comes from Offshore Wind

In a recent research report conducted by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) findings revealed that installed and planned offshore wind projects scattered throughout Europe account for 10 percent of the continent’s electricity.

The newly released findings can be found in EWEA’s recently launched “Oceans of Opportunity” which outlines the details of all existing and proposed or planned offshore wind farms throughout Europe. Arthuros Zervos, the president of EWEA, stated that the report highlights the large developer interest in the offshore wind energy market, and furthermore that the potential for projects is much more than the general public realizes.

The research report has been validated by Andris Piebalgs, EU Energy Commissioner, who said that utilising the wind off of the European coastline’s is a key solution to the global climate change issue and will help reduce the depletion of indigenous energy sources, fuel costs, and the looming threat of electricity shortages. 

EWEA announced the report this week in Stockholm, Sweden where the organization held their annual offshore wind conference. In addition to “Oceans of Opportunity”, EWEA unveiled a 20-year proposal for developing offshore wind farms further which they will present to various governments and EU officials.

The proposed 20-year plan, according to EWEA, calls for a more comprehensive power grid to be connected to offshore wind power sources in order to supply electricity to the national grid. The plan proposed building on 11 existing grids and adding an additional 21 grids to the North and Baltic seas. The organization called for eight new grids to be in place by 2020 and another six by 2030.