This article comes from Wind Energy Update
Offshore wind power generation has been on a constant rise worldwide ever since the first commercial project came online in Denmark in 1991. As of mid-2015, Europe had 10,394 MW of installed offshore wind energy capacity; China 718.9 MW; and Japan 52 MW, according to statistics from the Environmental and Energy Study Institute. While the United States has just started to invest in offshore wind energy, the potential resource is enormous, estimated to be 4,223 GW by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. In the near term, 3.6 GW of offshore wind energy capacity is expected to be added to the grid by 2020, through projects which have been issued leases by the Bureau of Energy Ocean Management (BOEM).
Factors to influence the mid-term market
The projected mid-term growth will depend upon a combination of political and economic factors, such as the upcoming presidential elections and compliance with the Clean Power Plan (CPP) from 2022. The CPP establishes carbon pollution standards and emission rates for each state and is projected to reduce emissions from the power sector 32% by 2030 from the 2005 levels. “The U.S. is amidst its first-ever restructuring of the entire electric generation market, driven by the CPP. In the next two to three years, the CPP will be implemented in all 50 states. That will pave the way for the market to recognize the damaging cost of fossil fuels, so it will immediately value renewable energy,” said Chris Wissemann, CEO of Fishermen’s Energy. The take-off of the U.S. offshore wind market will also depend on the next presidential and congressional elections. With the democrats in charge and the democratic congress, the CPP will be implemented. “I think New York and Massachusetts are going to lead the way with offshore wind over the next five years almost no matter what. New Jersey will depend on the next governor,” said Wissemann. “If a democratic gets in, then you can add New Jersey to New York and Massachusetts and you get a 5 GW market that will be implemented over the next 10 years.
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Filed Under: Offshore wind, Projects