Last year, more new offshore wind turbines came online in Europe than ever before. According to industry information, the output of wind farms off the coast increased by more than a third.
Last year, according to preliminary figures from the wind power association WindEurope, a total of 4.2 gigawatts of installed capacity in offshore wind farms were connected to the grid in Europe. That is 40 percent more capacity at sea than in 2022. Most of the capacity has been installed in the maritime areas of the Netherlands, France and Great Britain.
According to the Onshore Wind Energy Foundation, more than 1,500 offshore wind turbines with a total output of 8.4 gigawatts were in operation in Germany by the middle of last year.
More Auctions planned
According to WindEurope, if all countries hold their 2024 auctions as planned, at least 40 gigawatts will be auctioned this year. Germany, Denmark, Great Britain, France and the Netherlands are expected to auction the most capacity in the next two years.
The association expects almost 9 gigawatts for Germany alone. For comparison: 13.5 gigawatts of new offshore wind capacity were auctioned across Europe last year.
19 percent of electricity in Europe comes from wind energy
According to WindEurope, more wind turbines will also be built on land in European countries in 2023 than ever before in one year. According to the association, the share of wind energy in total electricity generation in Europe was 19 percent.
At the same time, according to WindEurope, more has been invested in offshore wind power: a total of 30 billion was raised for eight wind farms, a new record. After a market collapse in 2022 – due, among other things, to the consequences of the Russian attack on Ukraine and unclear political conditions – and a historic low in investments (0.4 billion euros), the situation has recovered.
What the European Union is planning
Last year, the European Union approved an action plan with 15 immediate measures to support the wind sector. The EU plans to achieve a share of renewable energy of at least 42.5 percent by 2030.