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Wind Power Could Provide Enough Clean Energy For The World By 2045

Wind Power Could Provide Enough Clean Energy For The World By 2045

The winds of change are blowing...

Tom Wood

Tom Wood

A new report claims that wind power could meet the energy needs of the entire world 18 times over if it continues to grow.

Currently, only 0.3 percent of the world's power comes from the wind, but with the rise in greener energy policies and the cost reduction to produce wind power, that figure could rise significantly.

This won't happen overnight, but it could still happen pretty quickly. The report by the International Environmental Agency (IEA) suggests that global offshore wind capacity could increase by as much as 15 times and attract $1 trillion - which is around £800bn - by 2040.

PA

The IEA report speculates this increase will come from more supportive government policies, the drop in price of installation, and what they call 'remarkable technological progress' including floating platforms, as well as larger turbines.

In fact, the global offshore wind market grew by around 30 percent between the years of 2010 and 2018. That means that the winds of change are blowing quicker than expected.

The rapid pace, which has been dictated by the UK and other European countries, saw 150 new projects established around the world.

Obviously, because it is bigger and has a whole load more people, China added more offshore wind capacity than anywhere else in 2018.

PA

The report states: "Today's offshore wind market doesn't even come close to tapping the full potential.

"With high-quality resources available in most major markets, offshore wind has the potential to generate more than 420,000 terrawatt hours per year worldwide. This is more than 18 times global electricity demand today."

That's good news, right?

Well, there's still a load of work to be done.

The agency warned that there is 'much work' remaining to switch the globe over to clean energy.

PA

Executive director of the IEA Dr Fatih Birol said: "Offshore wind currently provides just 0.3 percent of global power generation, but its potential is vast.

"More and more of that potential is coming within reach, but much work remains to be done by governments and industry for it to become a mainstay of clean energy transitions.

"By around 2025, China is likely to have the largest offshore wind fleet of any country, overtaking the United Kingdom.

"China's offshore wind capacity is set to rise from 4 gigawatts today to 110 gigawatts by 2040. Policies designed to meet global sustainable energy goals could push that even higher to above 170 gigawatts.

"In theory, [floating turbines] could enable offshore wind to meet the entire electricity demand of several key electricity markets several times over, including Europe, the United States and Japan."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Environment, Science, World News, Interesting, Technology