Orsted Chief Executive Rasmus Errboe has backed the AccelerateEU package published by the European Commission in April to speed up the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy.
He said the package, which focuses on measures to strengthen supply and demand including grid investment and faster permitting, represents a strong response to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East that continue to create a global energy price shock.
Errboe described the situation as the “second energy crisis in five years” following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and that “solutions are at hand” including offshore wind to reduce dependence on imported oil and gas.
“Europe is truly as its best when they are under pressure… and in our view we see it now,” he said.
“A continued focus on grids and cross border infrastructure is exactly what we like to see to install investor confidence in deployment of renewables.
“This massive investment we are seeing as a ‘need to have’ and we are appreciating AccelerateEU.”
The Orsted man said on a conference call to journalists this morning (6 May) the Danish developer which recorded an 11% year-on-year increase in EBIDTA for Q1 2026 had only felt a “marginal impact” on projects currently in construction from disruption caused by the conflict between US-Israel and Iran.
Errboe added that Orsted was considering the longer-term potential for cost increases but that this would be “manageable for us with the exposure we have”.
“It is something we are prepared for.”