European grid plans underestimate wind capacity by 27GW
European grid plans underestimate wind capacity by 27GW | Windpower Monthly
National grid plans in Europe, often based on outdated wind and solar targets, underestimate wind capacity by 27GW and solar by as much as 60GW, according to a report by think-tank Ember.
Europe’s REPowerEU programme also underestimates annual grid investment by at least €5 billion, Ember said, citing analysis of annual spend in the EU of approximately €63 billion – against a European Commission estimate for annual grid investment of €58.4 billion until 2030.
As well as increasing grid investment, Europe must fully align planning processes with ‘the new reality’ of the energy transition, Ember said.
“This must be urgently addressed, particularly as grid developments are characterised by much longer timescales than clean technologies,” it added.
Failure to address grid capacity issues in a timely manner will bring additional costs, it warned. In 2023, Spain spent more to manage its already congested transmission grid than it invested in its development.
The report analysed data related to national electricity transmission networks across 35 European countries (EU-27, Norway, Switzerland, the UK and Western Balkans).
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.