This joint agreement provides long-term certainty that will create an investible pipeline of projects in the future stimulating the supply chain and creating new job opportunities for young people looking to enter the green economy, with an expected tripling of jobs in the sector from 7,200 to 27,000 by 2030. The deal also importantly looks to attract a greater percentage of women into the industry, detailing a target of 33 per cent, up from the current 16 per cent. 

Innovation will continue to play a critical role in achieving the deployment ambitions set out in the deal and it is encouraging to see that industry is committed to continue to invest in UK-based research development and demonstration activities, which will be transferable to new markets across the globe.

One of UK’s flagship collaborative RD&D programmes, the Offshore Wind Accelerator, is an example of the success that can be achieved through setting a collaborative agenda. The programme has been at the heart of driving cost reduction in the UK and the wider European Offshore Wind market delivering a 15 per cent saving on the LCOE – an equivalent saving of £34bn.

The UK is a global leader in offshore wind. This deal represents both government and industry coming together to ratchet up their shared ambition, recognising the vital role that this technology has to play in the future of the UK’s energy mix. We welcome this deal, and look forward to building on the success of the last decade by continuing to work with government and industry to realise the full potential of offshore wind in catalysing the energy transition.

Jan Matthiesen, Director of Offshore Wind, the Carbon Trust