Record offshore wind auction speeds path to decarbonisation

The UK has awarded subsidy contracts for offshore wind projects to generate enough power for 12m homes, giving a new lease of life to an industry that is being throttled on the other side of the Atlantic.

- Jeevan Vasagar Climate Editor

Securing this power puts the UK on track to reach the government’s objective of a virtually carbon-free electricity system by 2030. Britain has placed an enormous bet on offshore wind, and the award of S8GW of offshore wind projects is the largest such auction to take place in Europe.

But questions remain about supply chain challenges, given the industry faces risks around the availability of specialist installation vessels, rising material costs and higher interest rates. There are also concerns about grid connections and, crucially, about the cost to billpayers. According to the Conservatives, the prices the government agreed were “the highest prices we have seen in a decade”.

‘The last of these is critical. Energy prices spiked after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and remain much higher than they were five years ago. High power prices are a barrier to decarbonisation, slowing the electrification of households, industry and transport.