Octopus Energy’s generation arm announced on Monday plans to invest $20bn (£15bn) into offshore wind by 2030.
The generation branch of the UK-based company oversees $7.7bn worth of clean energy projects globally. The new investment will contribute to the generation of 12GW of renewable electricity per year, enough power for approximately ten million homes, according to Octopus’ own estimates. The company did not specify exactly which projects will benefit from the investment.
The company is looking at several renewables projects around the world but maintains a focus on Europe. It will support developers of new offshore wind farms as well as wind farms that are already operational or under construction.
Octopus first entered the offshore wind market last year and has since made five offshore deals, amounting to a total of $1bn in investment.
The company has stakes in the Lincs offshore wind farm in the UK, as well as one of the world’s largest wind farms, Hornsea One, also off the east coast of England, UK. Last year it acquired the Borssele V wind farm in the Netherlands, which has some of the world’s largest turbines. In March this year, the company announced that it will invest $1.09bn (€1bn) into the French renewables market over the next two years. In May it began to follow through on this, agreeing to invest in three wind farms in France.
Zoisa North-Bond, CEO of Octopus Energy Generation, said in a statement: “Offshore wind has already rapidly transformed the UK’s energy system – and we’re incredibly excited about the potential for this technology globally. We’ve got big plans to invest in even more of these big fans to help wean ourselves off polluting gas. Offshore wind will undoubtedly continue to play a pivotal role in meeting net zero, boosting energy security and driving down bills.”
The company also supports floating offshore wind developer Simply Blue, which has produced a new type of offshore wind technology that taps into strong winds further out at sea.
Increased investment in offshore wind is expected to significantly boost local employment opportunities. The latest forecasts from the UK Offshore Wind Industry Council predict that the offshore wind sector will create more than 100,000 jobs in the UK alone by 2030.
