Project WINd’s Post

Big offshore ambitions require big thinking. Kevin O'Sullivan's article profiles Denmark's Esbjerg port and how even it struggles to keep up with the scaling of the offshore wind energy industry. In Ireland we have espoused ambitious plans for offshore wind, but without the policy clarity on how our grids and port infrastructure can match that ambition. Yesterday's inaugural speech by our new Taoiseach Simon Harris was understandably short-term in scope, but we will quickly need Government and new Enterprise Minister Peter Burke to set out how we achieve not just 2030 targets, but what our energy industry will look like in 2050 and 2060. Port infrastructure will be critical, as already outlined by industry leaders like Barry O'Sullivan. 20 MW wind turbines are coming, and we will need to get organised to handle them. Wind Energy Ireland #renewableenergy #offshorewind https://lnkd.in/e_GAd--D

𝐎𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐆𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲'𝐬 𝐎𝐟𝐟𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 🌬️ Germany is rapidly advancing its offshore wind sector as a cornerstone of its energy transition strategy. Currently, the country has 1,566 offshore wind turbines generating 8.5 GW of power, with ambitious targets set to reach 30 GW by 2030 and at least 70 GW by 2045. This growth is driven by technological advancements, supportive government regulations, and increasing investor interest, creating a vibrant landscape for companies looking to engage in this expanding market. Stay updated with the latest insights by visiting xpylon.com. https://lnkd.in/dt4VdW2k #EnergyTranition #OffshoreWind #EnergyGermany #SustainableEnergy

Irish wind fleet 'delivered stellar April' Wind power generation was the second highest on record for the month of April in Ireland, according to Wind Energy Ireland's monthly report. The latest figures show the country's wind farms generated 1076GWh of power in April 2024, slightly less than the previous record of 1112GWh in April 2023. Great to see Ireland continuing to generate such high levels of wind power to help decarbonise the country! #ireland #windpower #onshorewind

WindEurope Highlights Urgent Need to Accelerate Wind Energy Growth in Europe Reading Time: 4 minutesWind energy was 20% of all the electricity consumed in Europe. But Europe is not building enough new wind farms. The EU built only 13 GW last year, well below the 30 GW a year it needs to meet its 2030 energy targets. There are 3 problems: (a) most Governments are not applying the new EU permitting rules; (b) new grid connections are delayed; and (c) the slow pace of electrification is holding back demand. Governments are auctioning more new wind farms. So more new projects should be built provided Europe solves those 3 problems and there’s a proper […] - https://lnkd.in/dvJYdGuG #windenergy #windturbines #offshorewind #windturbine #cleanenergy #climatechange #sustainability #energynews #smartenergy #windfarm #windindustry #renewableenergy #renewables #energygrowth #europe #gridconnectivity #renewableenergy #windenergy #windeurope

It was both an honour and a privilege for the UL Executive MBA 2nd Year class to engage in energetic dialogue and discussion yesterday with Chairman Barry O'Sullivan, and Task Force members @LuukVanderWielen, Siobhan Dolan Clancy & Eamonn Murphy Prof. (Emeritus) regarding the implementation of the Shannon Estuary Economic Task Force report & recommendations as part of their strategy implementation module. A truly inspirational vision which now requires urgent action! #ULMBA#ShannonEstuaryTaskForce#DesirableFutures#SustainableEnterprise

Potential of the energy transition for investors in Germany – Noerr Insight No 2: Onshore wind Following our comprehensive briefing "German energy transition: Potential for investors" and part 1 of our series on the off-shore wind sector last week, we now took a closer look at onshore wind in part 2. Our key take learnings in this asset class: Current Challenges and Legislative Changes: While onshore wind has been a cornerstone of Germany's energy transition, investors have faced significant challenges, including limited sites for new turbines and rising costs. To address these issues, recent legislation, such as the German Onshore Wind Energy Act, aims to streamline planning and approval processes, mandate land allocations for wind power, and prioritize renewable energy development over certain environmental concerns. Incentives and Expansion Goals: The German government has set ambitious targets to increase onshore wind capacity from 61 GW to 115 GW by 2030 and 160 GW by 2040. While there are subsidies in place for expansion, the tender volumes have not been fully utilized, indicating a need for more attractive bidding conditions and potentially higher subsidies to encourage investment and meet these targets. Future Outlook and Investor Sentiment: The effectiveness of recent regulatory changes in revitalizing investor interest in onshore wind remains uncertain. While the government's initiatives aim to simplify processes and increase capacity, the true impact will depend on the successful implementation of these laws at the regional level and the ability to offer competitive bidding conditions amid fluctuating energy prices. Learn more about the potential of German onshore wind power plants for investors in the article by Tibor Fedke and Katrin Andrä: https://lnkd.in/dYHvQUbH Find the full briefing „German energy transition: Potential for investors“ here: https://lnkd.in/dEVUNg6w #Noerr #NoerrEnergyInfraMandA #EnergyTransition #ClimateChange #Decarbonisation

Today, a historical Danish offshore wind energy tender has been launched, featuring six sites, each with a minimum capacity of 1GW and the option for additional capacity. The goal is to deploy between 6 to 10 GW within six years. Given prevailing sector challenges like capital costs and supply chain delays, I'm eager to observe the tender outcome and subsequent developments. https://lnkd.in/exZWTAkF #offshore #windenergy #renewableenergy #europe

Thanks to the The Irish Times for this very fair article and it was a pleasure to discuss the unparalleled opportunities for Ireland with Kevin O'Sullivan last week. The Shannon Estuary Taskforce, at the request of the government, gave over 5,000 hours of their personal time to work on this and other opportunities. The then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Ministers Eamon Ryan, Simon Coveney, Norma Foley, all with truly inspirational words, launched our report last July including a Plan, agreed by all Stakeholders, to harvest power from Atlantic wind by 2032. One part of that plan requires investment in the 2 deep water ports of the Shannon Estuary, just like the investments that are now underway in many countries in Europe. Minister Ryan was very clear at recent IEA conference in Paris that governments need to ‘get out of the way’ and let industry get on with the work. https://lnkd.in/esXxAas8 We note government support for our State energy company ESB in its efforts to develop 2 floating wind farms for the benefit of the Scottish economy in the last several years. Just like the other developers, ESB have made no progress here on building floating wind farms, despite the need. Our new Taoiseach, Simon Harris has promised ‘a new energy’ for his tenure as leader of our government and has appointed a new generation of Ministers. Let us hope now that this government will show the vision and leadership of the first government of this State who built Ardnacrusha, the world’s largest hydroelectric plant in its day, a century ago. Today, the risk is beyond miniscule for a government spending €110 billion this year, but the rewards over the next century will be orders greater. Power from floating wind @ 10m/s will be equivalent in cost to fixed by 2035. We have 14 m/s wind speeds in the Atlantic, and as power is proportional to the cube of wind speed, 14 is 2.7 times better than 10! In this increasingly digital world, the countries that can offer large amounts of green energy to society will win, and we are already 5 years behind our neighbours. We eagerly await the new energy of this administration. The Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce plans are ready.

Case studies from Denmark (Port of Esbjerg) and France (Port La Nouvelle, near Narbonne) in the excellent recent article by Kevin O'Sullivan in the The Irish Times shows the impact of vision and ambition for offshore wind elsewhere in Europe. Barry O'Sullivan chairman of the Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce is quoted as saying "the Shannon estuary should be seen as the green front door for Europe, such is the depth, shelter, wet storage capacity and offshore wind speeds nearby". In order to achieve this, we can learn from our neighbours. "To justify the necessary investments, it is important to adopt a more regional or global perspective. This is the main lesson learned from the experience of Port Esbjerg, which can help the industry reach its full potential.” “Port-La Nouvelle, near Narbonne, in southern France is the only port with dedicated facilities to build and assemble offshore floating wind turbines close to the best windy location in the western Mediterranean. The port is publicly owned by Occitanie/Pyrénées-Méditerranée, the second-largest region in France, and privately managed. It is spending more than €680 million enlarging facilities, with funding secured through the regional government to ensure it does not transgress EU state aid rules. Port-La Nouvelle attracted private investment following the success of the initial partly state-funded projects”. https://lnkd.in/gceTuuMb

The failure of Denmark’s largest ever offshore wind tender to attract any bids means its government must rethink urgently the terms on which it expects developers to compete, said a national renewables group that warned “wind turbines are not money trees”. #renewables #windpower #windfarms Green Power Denmark WindEurope Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) Danish Energy Agency Ørsted Vattenfall https://lnkd.in/ebEfsfrg