Wind Turbine Orders Are Expected to Drop by 93 Percent

It now appears that orders for offshore wind turbines in Britain are expected to slump in the coming years. This could threaten to halt the industry’s recent growth and the expected creation of up to 10,000 green economy jobs.

Currently analysts are forecasting a 93 percent drop in the installation of new offshore wind farms in 2013 when compared to the previous year. They have this prediction because orders on things like cables, foundations and other equipment used to make these offshore wind farms are typically made about two years ahead of time. However, recently these orders have started to slowdown.

Wind farm developers say that they are worried that this slump in the industry could last for several years. This would result in large-scale job losses if other related work cannot be found. One developer even said that it would be hard for manufacturers to invest in new facilities in the UK without a steady stream of work.

Just recently, the UK overtook Denmark to become the world’s largest offshore wind farm industry. This means that the UK has tripled its capacity over the past few years. However, new projects will now start to dry up as of 2013. Only 90 megawatts, which is enough to supply about 30,000 homes with power when the wind is blowing, is forecast to be installed.

Many energy companies are expected to spend the next two years planning bids to build huge “Round 3″ projects. However, these kinds of projects may not become operational until the end of the decade. There are other projects that are supposed to be filling this gap, but due to planning problems and difficulties securing finances, this may not happen.