150 gigawatts of wind turbines in the North Sea by 2050
Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium announced on Wednesday, May 18, that they would install nearly 150 gigawatts of wind turbines in the North Sea by 2050, to make it the “green power plant of Europe” and do without Russian hydrocarbons.
They want to turn the North Sea into a “green power station” without Russian hydrocarbons. At a press conference in Esbjerg, alongside German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Dutch Minister Mark Rutte and Danish Prime Minister Alexander De Croo announced that they want to quadruple their total offshore wind capacity by 2030, and ten by 2050.
They would represent half of the EU’s offshore wind energy target by 2050
With the most powerful offshore wind turbines on the market (150 gigawatts is about 15,000 to 20,000 turbines), the four countries alone would represent half of the EU’s offshore wind energy target by 2050. According to the four signatory countries, 150 gigawatts of power in offshore wind power can supply the necessary electricity to 230 million households. An interim target of 65 gigawatts has been set for 2030, according to the statement.
The announcement comes in conjunction with a €210 billion plan presented by the European Commission which foresees an acceleration of renewable energies and energy savings to free itself as quickly as possible from Russian gas imports, in response to the war in Ukraine.
The Commission also proposed on Wednesday to raise its target of renewables’ share of the 2030 energy mix from 40% to 45%. the EU aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050.