The Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC) has welcomed the publication of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Energy Security Strategy, which envisages a fivefold increase in offshore wind capacity to 50GW by 2030.
The offshore wind target includes a sub-target of 5GW for floating wind.
The Government has also committed to reforming the planning process so that consenting decisions on offshore wind farms are taken within a year, rather than the current four-year average.
The strategy also sets a new hydrogen target of 10GW by 2030, half of which will be green hydrogen generated from renewable sources, mainly offshore wind.
OWIC co-chair Danielle Lane, Vattenfall’s UK Country Manager, said: “It’s great to see that the Prime Minister is determined to work closely with the industry to ramp up the UK’s offshore wind capacity rapidly over the course of this decade to five times its current level, putting it at the centre of his ambitious energy security strategy.
“To achieve this the planning process needs to be far more agile than it is currently, so we particularly welcome his commitment to ensure that consenting decisions will take no more than a year in future.
“We need to increase Britain’s energy security as swiftly as possible and industry will work with Government so that the planning process enables projects in the right locations and protects our marine environment.
“We also need to see faster progress on installing vital new grid infrastructure so that we can make the most of the enormous amounts of clean electricity we’re generating offshore.”
The 5GW target for floating wind will “help to kickstart a whole new British industry” manufacturing “cutting-edge” technology for global export, she said.