Page 5 - AsiaElec Week 48 2020
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AsiaElec COMMENTARY AsiaElec
1,400GW by 2050, an average of 58.3GW of new may seem like a daunting number compared to
additions will be needed every year, slightly less the 29GW of offshore wind installed today, this
than what is expected in 2020. is only a small fraction of the technical potential
Furthermore, the GWEC said that over the available worldwide. We want to ensure that gov-
coming decade, offshore wind will develop in ernments around the world are well-equipped
North America and Asia, adding to Europe, to effectively tap into this resource potential.
which is currently the dominant regional mar- Offshore wind has proven itself to be an impor-
ket. However, Latin America and Africa will also tant driver of jobs, local investment, affordable
emerge in the coming decades. energy, grid stability and energy security in
As well as new markets, innovation in tech- countries across the world, but repeating the
nology will be key to driving growth and pushing success story of offshore wind in new markets is
down costs. not ‘copy and paste’.”
The most obvious example is floating off- The OREAC report stresses that offshore
shore, which will reach full commercialisation wind can deliver nearly half of the identified
by 2030 with at least 6 GW installed globally. decarbonisation potential, while investment in
Other innovations include turbine technol- offshore wind yielded an average benefit-cost
ogy, which is set for improved efficiency and ratio of 12:1.
resilience, resulting in levelised cost of electric- Furthermore, the 1,400MW target for 2050
ity (LCOE) reductions and increased adoption. would mean that oceans would be supplying
Other innovations such as Power-to-X will around 10% of the world’s electricity by that date.
also play a key role in opening new market Given the current pace of new projects, the
opportunities for offshore wind and decarbon- target seems to be entirely possible if individual
ising our energy systems. governments and the global community con-
Stephen Bull, senior vice-president for off- tinue to support investment and innovation in
shore wind at Equinor, added: “While 1,400GW offshore wind.
Week 48 02•December•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P5
