Octopus Energy’s (Octopus) generation arm, which manages US$7.7 billion worth of green energy projects globally, announced plans to unleash US$20 billion of investment into offshore wind by 2030. The investment will go toward the generation of 12 GW of renewable electricity capacity, enough power for 10 million homes.
Octopus is targeting projects across the globe, with a focus on Europe. The company has several deals in the pipeline. It will back developers of new offshore wind farms as well as wind farms that are under construction or operational. The global energy and technology group first entered the offshore wind farm market last year and has since made five offshore deals, amounting to a total of US$1 billion.
Octopus has stakes in the Lincs offshore wind farm and one of the world’s largest wind farms, Hornsea One — both off the east coast of England — and it acquired the Borssele V wind farm in the Netherlands, which has some of the world’s largest turbines. It also backs Simply Blue, a developer of floating offshore wind projects.
Scaling investment in offshore wind will not only create more clean energy but also numerous job opportunities. Octopus cited forecasts that show the offshore wind sector will create more than 100,000 jobs by 2030 in the United Kingdom.
“Offshore wind has already rapidly transformed the UK’s energy system — and we’re incredibly excited about the potential for this technology globally,” said Zoisa North-Bond, chief executive officer of Octopus Energy Generation. “We’ve got big plans to invest in even more of these big fans to help wean ourselves off polluting gas. Offshore wind will undoubtedly continue to play a pivotal role in meeting net zero, boosting energy security, and driving down bills.”
