Offshore wind farms in UK waters generated enough power to meet the electricity needs of 41% (11.5m) of the nation’s homes in a new record year in 2022, according to the Crown Estate.
The latest Offshore Wind Report from the Crown Estate found that in total offshore wind generated 45 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity last year, up from 37TWh in 2021 and a sixfold increase over the past 10 years.
The new record was achieved despite 2022 wind speeds coming in lower than the long-term average.
The report forecasts that offshore wind is on track to generate enough electricity to meet the needs of nearly half (47%) of UK homes by the end of the 2023.
Last year saw a number of key developments in the UK offshore wind sector.
Hornsea 2, the world’s largest offshore wind farm with capacity to power 1.1m homes, became fully operational, as did Moray East off the north-east coast of Scotland.
There are now 50 wind farms in UK waters which are either operating or under construction, with another seven that have secured a Contract for Difference (CfD).
There is also a significant development pipeline, including up to 8GW of additional capacity to come from the Round 4 projects that signed Agreements for Lease with the Crown Estate in early 2023.
In 2022, UK offshore wind capacity accounted for 24% of global capacity, second only to China, with continued progress to push hard to meet the government’s target of 50GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030.
Managing director for marine at the Crown Estate Gus Jaspert said: “The UK’s offshore wind sector continues to be a world leader and a UK success story.
“Now generating enough electricity to meet the needs of more than 40 per cent of UK homes, the sector is having a major impact on meeting the national challenges of energy security and decarbonisation to address climate change.”
The 2022 report covers a wide range of data and metrics relevant to the UK offshore wind sector.
Other highlights from the report reveal that the average size of an operating wind farm stands at 300MW, while the average size of a wind farm under construction is 1.1GW.
Total UK operating capacity increased from 11.3GW in 2021 to 13.7GW in 2022, while global capacity increased from 48GW to 57GW in the same period.