Offshore Wind Worldwide Regulatory Framework in Selected Countries 5th Edition 2024 - Flipbook - Page 335
Offshore Wind Worldwide 2024
shore wind sector involves not just increasing capacity but also ensuring that there is
a 51% publicly owned stake in new offshore
wind developments, emphasizing community benefit and public control over energy
resources. This approach is expected to
channel approximately £83 billion into offshore wind projects along the UK coastline.
The impact of these commitments on the
UK's renewable energy market, particularly
offshore wind, could be transformative. By
aiming to significantly boost offshore wind
capacity and increase the focus on clean
energy technologies, Labour's strategy
could accelerate the UK's transition to a lowcarbon economy and reduce reliance on
fossil fuels. Their commitment to nationalizing the National Grid and streamlining the
energy planning process would further facilitate faster development and deployment of
renewable energy infrastructure, making it
easier to achieve decarbonization targets.
(h) Offshore Wind Environmental
Improvement Package
In October 2023, the Energy Act 2023 received Royal Assent, delivering the UK Government’s Offshore Wind Environmental
Improvement Package (OWEIP) as part of its
British Energy Security Strategy (BESS).
As well as including the target of 50 GW of
offshore wind, including up to 5GW of floating wind, by 2030, the strategy also outlines
a series of measures which collectively aim
to accelerate offshore wind deployment
whilst protecting the marine environment,
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including the development of an OWEIP.
The OWEIP aims to address the impacts of
offshore wind infrastructure in the marine
environment while speeding up the consenting process and protect the environment.
Measures include:
•
the delivery of Offshore Wind Environmental Standards (previously called
nature-based design standards in the
British Energy Security Strategy);
•
the development of regulations and
guidance to streamline the Habitats
Regulations Assessment and Marine
Conservation Zone assessment process
for offshore wind projects;
•
the delivery of environmental compensatory measures across one or more
offshore wind projects to compensate
for adverse environmental effects on
protected sites that cannot be otherwise
avoided, reduced or mitigated;
•
the implementation of a Marine
Recovery Fund; and
•
the introduction of strategic monitoring
to improve understanding of the marine
environment and the measures needed
to further protect it.19
(i)
Major recent and future offshore
wind auctions
(i) The Crown Estate: Round 4
19 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-policy-statement-for-renewable-energy-infrastructure-en-3/national-policy-statement-forrenewable-energy-infrastructure-en-3.
