Map of the Week – Locations of wind farms
The 16th edition of the EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) took place from 25 to 29 October 2021. The theme was ‘Towards 2030: Reshaping the European Energy System”. The event included many different components including a 3-day digital Policy Conference, the EUSEW Awards, the second European Youth Energy Day, video meetings, virtual stands and other networking activities. Online side events and Sustainable Energy Days also took place all over Europe.
One of the sessions organised in the framework of the Policy Conference was dedicated to ‘Reinforcing sustainability of the offshore renewable energy sector’. One year after from the adoption of the Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy, this session brought together speakers from the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), the European Commission Directorate General for Energy (DG ENER) and Directorate General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE), the Dutch Marine Energy Centre and the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management to address key issues for its implementation.
The European Union (EU) offshore wind energy sector has grown to a capacity of 14.6 GW by the end of 2020. The main EU producers of offshore wind energy are Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark. [1] Explore the Map of the Week to see where offshore wind farms are located. The Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy proposes to increase Europe's offshore wind capacity to at least 60 GW by 2030 and to 300 GW by 2050. [1] It is important to address environmental considerations in the development of offshore wind energy. The EU Blue Economy Report 2021 states that Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) can be considered as instrumental to balance sea uses and sustainably manage the marine ecosystems.
The data in this map are provided by EMODnet.
[1] https://blueindicators.ec.europa.eu/published-reports_en