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LONDON — The British government opened a major new phase on Wednesday in its drive for renewable energy, calling for bids to build up to 25 gigawatts of offshore wind turbines, triple the amount already in the pipeline, by 2020.
The announcement by the Crown Estate, which manages all property owned by the monarch including the seabed around Britain, was welcomed by British Wind Energy Association chairman Adam Bruce as "impressively bold."
Under rounds one and two of the program to lease offshore renewable power generation, a total of eight gigawatts of wind turbines are already under development.
Round three announced on Wednesday would raise that to 33 gigawatts, equivalent to one-quarter of Britain's electricity supply.
Internet Links
- British Wind Energy Association: Offshore
- The Crown Estate
- Wind farm sites from rounds one and two (pdf)
- Interactive map of rounds one and two sites
"The expansion of wind energy is already a real success story for the U.K. We will shortly become the leading country in the world in terms of the number of wind farms operating offshore. The potential for round three will add to that success," Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks said.
He said he hoped the announcement, coupled with changes in planning regulations going through parliament, would give industry confidence to make the necessary investments.
The BWEA said that if round three met its goal, about 5,000 more wind turbines would built in the 11 sites around the British coastline identified by the Crown Estate.
Rob Hastings, head of the Crown Estate's marine section, said he anticipated investment of £60-billion to £80-billion (up to $157.8-billion Canadian) would be needed to hit the round three goal.
"There is obviously a big mountain ahead to scale," Richard Lambert, head of the Confederation of British Industry, told the BWEA's annual offshore conference, referring to Shell's recent decision to pull out of the major London Array wind farm.
To help the process, the Crown Estate said it would meet up to half the pre-construction costs, including getting planning consents and enabling works to speed delivery.
It would not be involved in construction or operation.
Potential applicants, which may be individual firms or consortiums, can bid for licences on the 11 sites ranging range from northeastern Scotland to Cumbria. The winner will be granted sole development rights on the site.
Phenomenal growth
Mr. Hastings said he anticipated the bidding and approval process to end by 2015, with construction to be completed by 2020, the European Union's target date for 20 per cent of the bloc's energy to be coming from renewable sources.
Britain's share of this is set to be about 15 per cent, and the BWEA has said that would mean the country would have to obtain up to 40 per cent of its electricity from wind by that date, a goal it said is tough but achievable.
"We are on the cusp of phenomenal growth," said BWEA chief executive Maria McCaffery. "People with eye-watering amounts of money to invest are coming to talk to us. What we need is consistent government policy."
The association said that such was the growth of on and offshore wind power that within five years it would provide more electricity than nuclear power as the country's aged nuclear plants are retired.
Nuclear power provides 19 per cent of Britain's electricity, a percentage that is set to decline rapidly in the next few years in the absence of new construction that the government says the country urgently needs.
