Construction In Offshore Wind Sector ‘Thriving’

The level of construction in the offshore wind sector hit a record high in 2016, accounting for 42 per cent of UK construction contract value in the utilities and power sector, and 21 per cent of total infrastructure.

Barbour ABI released data showing the strength of the sector overall, and added that this shows no signs of abating.

Overall, the value of the offshore wind farm construction projects almost doubled in 2016, hitting £4.1 billion, up from the £2.45 billion recorded in 2015.

What’s more, there’s a further £23.2 billion worth of construction contract value in the pipeline for the industry.

Michael Dall, lead economist at Barbour ABI, pointed that there has been significant investment in the technology since 2013, when offshore wind accounted for just 7.5 per cent of construction contract value within the utilities and power sector.

“With reports showing that the cost of producing electricity in this way has fallen significantly, the increase in construction value makes sense,” he added.

Last month, the UK government announced it would make £28 million available to help innovation within the energy sector to help bring costs down. Offshore wind was one of the areas in which the government said it would invest these funds, which should provide a further boost for the growing sector.

Industrial energy reduction and smart systems were the other areas that were singled out for a slice of this innovation funding.

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