Wednesday 13 June 2012

Wind cost could come down by a third

The Government and wind industry players say it will be possible to bring the price of offshore wind energy down to £100 per megawatt in less than a decade.

This would cut the cost by around a third (30%) by 2020, from £140/MWh today - if the “tough timeline” of recommendations in a new report out today from DECC’s wind taskforce is followed.

The report says this could slice £3 billion a year off the cost of delivering 18GW of electricity from offshore wind farms.

Offshore wind power recently fielded criticism for being too expensive in a report from think-tank Policy Exchange.

The Task Force report builds on the findings of a new study by The Crown Estate, which is sponsoring trade body RenewableUK’s conference on offshore wind power this week, which also concludes reaching £100 per MWh is achievable within the next seven years.

Energy Minister Charles Hendry welcomed the possibility, saying Government was “clear” offshore wind needed to become less costly.

Mr Hendry said: "Offshore wind will be a vital part of a diverse and secure low carbon energy mix in the decades ahead. But we are clear that costs must come down. I am encouraged that this report shows that substantial cost savings can be achieved if action is taken."

DONG Energy, the Danish firm which has several wind farms in the UK and has spent billions said the cost reduction is certainly achievable.

Benj Sykes, Director of UK Wind Operations at DONG Energy said: "We are now seeing good progress in identifying ways to reduce the cost of offshore wind… The timeline is tough so the task force must now work on implementing the ideas in their report.”