In the first six months of 2010, 118 offshore wind turbines totaling 333 MW were fully grid connected in Europe and overall, 16 offshore wind farms totaling 3,972 MW were under construction.
According to a recent report from the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), there are 948 offshore wind turbines in 43 fully operational offshore wind farms, taking the total installed offshore wind power capacity of Europe to 2,396 MW as of 30 June 2010.
Four manufacturers had offshore wind turbines connected to the grid during the first six months of 2010. Siemens represents the majority (55%), followed by Vestas (36%) and REpower (9%).
"The number of offshore wind turbines connected to the grid in the first half of this year is well over half the total amount installed all last year and I am confident we are heading for a record year," said Justin Wilkes, Director of Policy at EWEA.
However, financing offshore wind farms on a non recourse basis has proved challenging in the first half of 2010 due to the financial crisis says the EWEA.
Mr. Wilke warned of continuing issues relating to finance, stating the wind industry is being held back by the lack of available funds for independent wind farm developers and that loans from public institutions such as the European Investment Bank are crucial to the industry’s continued strong growth.
The European offshore wind industry – Key trends and statistics: 1st half 2010 can be downloaded here (PDF)
