Germany, others want to turn North Sea into green powerhouse
24 Apr 2023 04:23pm
Germany, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Britain, Ireland and Luxembourg want to increase capacities to 300 gigawatt (GW) by 2050, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said ahead of the Monday meeting. -AFP pic
A
A
A
Germany, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Britain, Ireland and Luxembourg want to increase capacities to 300 gigawatt (GW) by 2050, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said ahead of the meeting.
In 2022 wind farms in the North Sea had a capacity of roughly 30 GW, according to industry association WindEurope, with Germany contributing 8 GW.
The expansion of offshore wind energy in Germany and the EU has been slow in recent years. Germany updated its targets last year to an installed capacity of at least 30 GW by 2030 and at least 70 GW by 2045.
De Croo, who is hosting the summit, wants to focus discussions on how to swiftly build new wind farms to enhance energy security and fight climate change.
"The faster we build those farms, the faster we can reduce the emission of CO2,” said De Croo ahead of the summit.
De Croo wants to promote standardization of wind farms, coordinate tendering and build more interconnections to reach the targets.
Belgium also wants to discuss the protection of offshore plants.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is to attend the meeting, which comes less than a year after the first summit on energy generation in the North Sea was held in Esbjerg, Denmark.
Meanwhile, more than 100 companies warned of supply chain bottlenecks in the rapid expansion of offshore wind energy in Europe, in a joint declaration published on Monday.
They argue Europe's wind industry is currently not large enough to meet political commitments to expand offshore capacity in the North Sea tenfold to 300 gigawatts by 2050.
Limitations in the production of key components including foundations, cables and transformers, as well as the availability of installation and service vessels are hurdles, the statement said.
"Major new investments are needed in manufacturing capacity and key infrastructure such as grids and ports," the statement reads and call on governments "to kick-start" funding through financial support.
Offshore wind development has slowed due to rising costs, the statement says, calling for political support. -Bernama-dpa
