GB Energy - offshore wind farm drive

Commenting on today’s offshore wind farm drive, Vicky Parker, UK Head of Power and Utilities, PwC UK, said:

"An interesting first announcement by GB Energy to work in partnership with the Crown Estate to accelerate the roll out of offshore wind. Delivering on the 20-30GW pledge would mark a pivotal step towards enhancing the UK's energy security, achieving net-zero targets and reducing volatility in energy bills. The intent behind the announcement is to drive substantial investment into the sector, turbocharging the UK's transition to low carbon energy and positioning the country as a leader in sustainable, secure, and economically beneficial energy solutions.

“We also welcome the publication of the five functions of GB Energy, which demonstrate that it will look to work collaboratively across the investor, corporate and public sector communities. GB Energy's success should be measured not by the amount of money it spends, but by the rate of deployment of low carbon generation, the amount of private sector investment it attracts, and the depth of the supply chains it helps develop. This will be particularly important in offshore wind, which has significant private sector capital already invested in this market; enabling that to grow at scale will be critical to success.

“Maximising the wider benefits will require investment in the right skills and supply chains at the right time to support this roll out. That will require much more targeted regional investment. Once built, the generation has to be connected to realise the benefits set out by GB Energy; this announcement places even more urgency on the need to progress in parallel the development of the transmission and distribution infrastructure. It is essential that a whole-system view is pursued to support the country to meet its accelerated targets, make tough choices and prioritise those areas that are the most critical; this will also allow investment and support to be focused in order to make real progress.”