The UK is marking 25 years since its first offshore wind farm began generating clean power, with Blyth Offshore Wind Farm off the Northumberland coast paving the way for an industry now central to the country’s energy transition.
The four megawatt pilot, made up of two turbines a kilometre out to sea, produced enough electricity for around 3,000 homes.
In a single generation offshore wind has grown into our largest source of clean power, supplying over a third of renewable electricity and a record share of total generation last year.
The country now has 2,878 turbines, including 10 floating machines, with 16.1GW of capacity, enough to power 16 million homes.
Without this build out the UK would have imported and burned over 20 million extra tonnes of gas, emitting more than 60 million tonnes of CO2.
The sector is reshaping the economy, with nearly 2,000 companies and 160 factories in the wind supply chain expected to contribute £18.2 billion over the next decade.
Around 40,000 jobs are supported, set to rise as 7.5GW of offshore wind under construction comes online and a further 22GW of consented projects progresses.
Energy Minister Michael Shanks said offshore wind is “at the heart of our 2030 mission” to cut exposure to volatile fossil fuel markets, while industry figures at RenewableUK, The Crown Estate and Venterra Group are calling for a steady pipeline of projects to sustain investment and coastal jobs over the next 25 years.
Britain’s 25 years of offshore wind leadership appeared first on Energy Live News.