New report estimates close to 100,000 jobs in UK offshore wind sector by 2030
The UK offshore wind industry could support close to 100,000 jobs by 2030, backed by a substantial increase in the billions of pounds of private investment, according to a new report published by the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC).
The report revealed that the sector supports over 31,000 jobs, which is a 16% increase on the 26,000 jobs reported in last year’s survey. Of those, 19,600 are direct jobs and 11,500 are indirect. 30% of the jobs are in Scotland, and the English region benefitting most is Yorkshire and The Humber, where 15% of the jobs are located.
The study also estimated that by 2030, the industry will employ over 97,000 people in the UK, of which 61,000 direct jobs. The study showed that the percentage of women working in offshore wind has increased slightly from 18% reported a year ago to 19.25%, which is welcome “but the industry still has some way to go before reaching its target of 33% by 2030.”
The report stated that between 2022 and 2030, the industry will see £155bn of private investment in new offshore wind projects, taking the average annual spend to over £17bn a year – significantly higher than the level of private investment reported last year, which showed an average annual spend of just over £10bn. The increases reflect the enormous expansion of the UK’s total pipeline of offshore wind projects at all stages of development over the past 12 months, which now stands at 86 GW. This 60% increase has been driven mainly by major leasing round announcements by The Crown Estate with 8GW and Crown Estate Scotland with 25 GW of ScotWind.
“This report demonstrates the extraordinary potential of renewable energy to create jobs, drive investment and secure cheaper, clean electricity. We have ambitious plans to go even further as the UK becomes a global renewable energy powerhouse,” the country’s energy minister, Greg Hands, said.
