Der Windpark Walney Extension in der Irischen See
Foto: Peter Byrne/ dpa
After the application period ended on Friday, the government in London confirmed that there were no bids for the construction of government-subsidized offshore wind farms in the UK.
Das Ziel Londons, die Stromproduktion durch Offshore-Windparks bis zum Jahr 2050 von derzeit 14 Gigawatt auf 50 Gigawatt zu erhöhen, scheint damit noch schwerer zu erreichen zu sein als ohnehin.
Contracts were offered for the construction of offshore wind farms with a total capacity of five gigawatts off the British coast – according to the BBC, enough to power five million households. The program includes government support in the form of millions of dollars for construction, as well as a guaranteed price for the purchase of electricity.
According to industry experts, British media reported that the guaranteed electricity price promised by the government was too low to cover the increased costs due to inflation. The BBC stated that the guaranteed price was £44 (€51.30) per megawatt-hour.
The government in London presented the bidding competition as a success, despite nearly 100 contracts being awarded in the areas of solar energy, onshore wind power, and for the first time, geothermal energy. The lack of bids for offshore projects is consistent with results in Germany and Spain and is attributed to „the global rise in inflation and its impact on supply chains,“ according to a statement from the Ministry of Energy in London.
Currently, offshore wind covers eleven percent of the electricity demand in the UK. Due to its extensive coastline, the country is considered an ideal location for offshore wind farms. Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson even set a goal to make his country the „Saudi Arabia of wind power.“