Offshore wind leads the unstoppable renewables revolution

2020 saw renewables outstrip fossil fuels for the first time when it came to electricity generation - official figures have confirmed. Green sources, led by offshore wind, provided 43 per cent of the demand, with the likes of gas and coal contributing 38.5 per cent. When nuclear is put into the mix as a low carbon source, the figure increases to 59 per cent. Wind’s contribution was up 18 per cent year-on-year - with the world-leading Hornsea One offshore wind farm coming online, via Grimsby.

It is almost double the size of the previous largest installment. And with the year seeing targets raised by the Prime Minister, the industry has been buoyed with £60 billion of investment and a further 40,000 jobs now forecast for the near term. RenewableUK’s deputy chief executive, Melanie Onn, said: “These record-breaking figures, set despite the pandemic, show that renewables are keeping this country reliably powered up during the most challenging period any of us have faced for many decades. “Another key set of figures published today shows that the UK’s offshore wind industry now supports over 26,000 jobs, mainly in coastal areas which need new opportunities. This will rise to over 69,000 over the next five years as our domestic supply chain grows rapidly.

“The offshore wind industry is attracting over £60 billion in private investment in this fiveyear period, helping to kickstart the Prime Minister’s green economic recovery and getting us closer towards net zero emissions on time.”

Ms Onn was MP for Grimsby as it developed into the world-leading operations and maintenance hub, with the Humber identified as one of four key regions set to benefit. The ink is still drying on the £75 million Treasury cheque to kickstart Able Marine Energy Park at North Killingholme, while across the ‘Energy Estuary’ plans have been submitted to double the size of the Siemens Gamesa blade plant.

The figures, published in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Energy Trends report, show that onshore and offshore wind provided more than half of the UK’s renewable power in 2020 by generating 24.2 per cent of the UK’s electricity needs (13 per cent offshore and 11.2 per cent onshore. Britain’s largest power station, Drax, has just ended coal generation with the expiration of a winter contract, but had barely used the black stuff in recent times having fuel-switched to biomass - imported chiefly through Immingham.

Covid’s knock-on was clear too, with overall demand dropping. Generation fell 3.7 per cent from 324.8 TWh in 2019 to 312.8 TWh.