BAKU, Azerbaijan, Nov.10
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The share of offshore wind in total wind additions is expected to have increased further by 2025, reaching 20 percent as deployment in new markets gains momentum, Trend reports citing the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Annual net wind capacity additions are expected to reach 65 GW in 2020, 8 percent more than in 2019. Covid‑19 measures led to onshore construction activity slowing down from February to April due to supply chain disruptions and logistical challenges in many countries, but the offshore wind sector has been only mildly affected by delays caused by the Covid‑19 crisis due to long project lead times.
For 2021, the forecast assumes a further acceleration of wind additions to 68 GW (7.3 GW offshore), driven by delayed onshore projects becoming operational as key countries in Europe and the United States have passed regulations providing flexibility for commissioning deadlines.
In 2022, global annual installations return to the 2019 level due to the phase-out of incentives in major markets in the People’s Republic of China (“China”) and United States, which is partly offset by faster expansion in Europe. The share of offshore capacity in total wind additions reaches almost 15 percent in 2022 – 50 percent higher than in 2019 – thanks to acceleration in key European markets and large capacity becoming operational in nascent markets such as France, Korea and Viet Nam while the Chinese market slows. The United States is expected to join the ranks of the largest offshore markets after 2022.
Annual global wind additions in 2023-25 could range from 65 GW in the main case and 100 GW in the accelerated case. Accelerating deployment will require the enhancement of policy support schemes, more investment in grids, eradication of social acceptance and permitting challenges, faster expansion of corporate PPAs and alleviation of regulatory uncertainties and off-taker risks in emerging markets.
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