The Crown Estate is increasing its offshore wind capacity to 4GW, enough to power 4 million homes.
The move comes in an attempt to support the government’s target of 50GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030.
RenewableUK chief executive Dan McGrail said:” Maximising the amount of offshore wind capacity we can install in areas where leasing agreements are already in place is vital to get us closer to the Government’s target of 50GW by 2030.”
Crown Estate offshore wind developers argue that the additional capacity can be generated from areas of the seabed they hold existing rights for.
“Utilising these areas of seabed to the full could add up to 4GW, which is more than a quarter of the UK’s current offshore wind capacity, representing a significant step forward,” added McGrail.
“Accelerating deployment in this way would make projects even more cost-effective through economies of scale, which is good news for consumers as well as creating further opportunities for us to grow our supply chain.”
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The Crown Estate said it will balance the economic and clean energy potential of these projects with its commitments to nature and biodiversity and duty to make the most effective and efficient use of a valuable, but increasingly busy, seabed.
Any decision taken will be subject to a ‘Plan-Level Habitats Regulations Assessment’ (HRA) to understand the collective environmental impact of the additional capacity across all seven projects.
“The industry is working closely with other seabed users and nature conservation bodies to ensure that we continue to develop projects in an environmentally sensitive way which protects and enhances the UK’s rich marine biodiversity,” said McGrail.
“Rapid improvements in offshore wind technology since these leases were awarded mean that the time is now right to reassess carefully how we can make the most of our main source of renewable power in the years ahead.”
