Global offshore wind grows by 10.8 GW in 2023 to over 75 GW - GWEC

The global wind industry installed 10.8 GW of new offshore wind capacity in 2023, marking the second-highest annual installations level, the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) said on Monday.

At the end of 2023, the global offshore wind capacity in operation was 75.2 GW. New capacity grew 24% year-over-year and GWEC expects this pace of increase to be maintained up to 2030, if the current policy momentum continues.

The organisation projects that 410 GW of new offshore wind capacity will be installed in the next 10 years, with two-thirds of this to be built between 2029 and 2033.

The expected growth will be fueled by the next wave of offshore wind markets like Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brazil, Colombia, Ireland and Poland, GWEC said.

“Installing almost 11 GW of offshore wind is the leading edge of a new wave of offshore wind growth. Policy progress – especially across the Asia-Pacific region and the Americas – has set us on course to regularly install record-breaking capacity annually, and pass the 380 GW target set up by the Global Offshore Wind Alliance. That means offshore wind is on course to achieve the tripling ambition set at COP28 in Dubai," commented GWEC CEO Ben Backwell.

In 2023, China led developments for the sixth consecutive year, adding 6.3 GW in 2023. Europe had a record year with 3.8 GW of new offshore wind. The region was headed by the Netherlands with 1.9 GW of offshore wind capacity commissioned in 2023, followed by the UK with 833 MW, France with 360 MW, Denmark with 344 MW, Germany with 257 MW, Norway with 35 MW, and Spain with 2 MW. By the end of 2023, 41 GW and 34 GW of offshore wind turbines were operating in Asia and Europe, respectively.

RenewableUK also released an offshore wind report yesterday.

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