Episode 11: WindEurope’s chair dissects the EU’s Net Zero Industry Act
Episode 11: WindEurope’s chair dissects the EU’s Net Zero Industry Act | Windpower Monthly
Last month, the European Commission proposed a package of measures which, if enacted, could help boost the fortunes of the wind industry in member states as well as speeding up the roll out of renewable energy.
They include a ‘et Zero industry Act, which could boost member states’ permitting capacity and reform auction criteria for new wind farms, they also include Electricity market reforms which could expand the use of corporate power purchase agreements across the continent, and a Critical raw Materials Act which seeks to secure Europe’s supply of the essential components the wind industry needs for future expansion.
In the eleventh episode of the Wind Power podcast, Ian Griggs, deputy editor of Windpower Monthly, talked to Utermöhlen about whether the EU’s package is sufficient to help the industry, how it compares with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) policy in the US policy and where the EU could go further and faster.
The conversation also touched on what skills the wind industry needs now and how to plug the skills gap effectively.
To listen, simply click on the 'play' button in the graphic above, or follow and download Wind Power on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other platforms.
This episode was produced by Czarina Deen and researched by Craig Richard and Orlando Jenkinson
To listen to previous episodes, click on the links below:
Related Knowledge Center: Offshore wind energy
Over the next decade, U.S. offshore wind power is expected to grow from a single 30-megawatt wind farm off Rhode Island to more than 2,000 MW of capacity along the Atlantic Seaboard. There are contracts for wind power off the coasts of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Virginia.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has estimated the United States has over 4,000 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind potential, enough to power the country four times over.
The growth in part being spurred by state solicitations, including in New York, where then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) set a commitment of 9,000 MW of offshore wind by 2035, and in Connecticut, where in June 2021, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) signed legislation authorizing the construction of 2,000 MW of offshore wind by 2030.
The offshore development is also being driven by an investment tax credit set to end in December 2019 and is equal to 12 percent of expenditures. U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Tom Carper (D-Del.) have introduced a bill to extend the tax credit for up to eight years.
The Interior Department has held eight competitive lease sales that resulted in 15 offshore wind leases over 1.7 million acres that has the potential for 21 GW of capacity. In February 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management completed a bidding process that realized $4.37 billion for 488,000 acres across six lease areas in federal waters off New York and New Jersey.
Projects have also been proposed off the Southeast coast, off California and Hawaii, and for the Great Lakes.