Offshore wind generation in the UK increased by 28% during 2018, resulting to a record-breaking 8% for UK’s electricity, as reported by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
Mainly, UK’s offshore wind capacity rose by 1.2GW. The increase was due to large projects opening or being expanded, such as the 659MW Walney Extension offshore wind farm.
Moreover, offshore wind turbines produced 26.7TWh in 2018, contributing to the total renewable energy record production of 111.1TWh, an 11.8% increase compared to 2017.
During Q4 of 2018, the generation produced by offshore wind rose by 14%, from 7.8TWh to a record 8.9TWh, also caused by an increase in capacity.
In the meantime, in the end of Q4 offshore wind reached the 18.5% share in UK’s renewables capacity, which resulted to 44.4GW, a 9.7% increase year-on-year.
The load factors for offshore wind rose by 1.2%, from 38.9% to 40.1%, BEIS reported.
RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Emma Pinchbeck commented
Wind power in the UK is driving a transformation in energy, to clean, affordable and flexible power that works hand in hand with exciting technologies of the future like storage and EVs.
Chief Executive concluded that it is important that the Government fully acknowledges that renewables are the future in the energy policy, from fair markets for flexible power and innovation funding for new technologies, to removing the obstacles in the way of the cheapest form of generation: onshore wind.