Recharge News
India is likely to establish a sustainable offshore wind sector “sooner rather than later”, said the international consortium helping to kick-start the sector there as it set out a pathway that could lead to 5GW by 2032 in the key states of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.
The FOWIND consortium listed five priority issues to address in its first over-arching assessment of possible development in the two states, which have been identified as most sutable first movers in an Indian offshore sector.
A long-term roadmap, clarity over consenting, grid readiness, appropriate financial support mechanisms, and competence and skills development are cited in the FOWIND report From Zero to Five GW: Offshore Wind Outlook for Gujarat and Tamil Nadu (2018-2032).
FOWIND – which is led by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) with help from partners including DNV GL – said experience from more mature offshore wind markets suggests tackling those factors is critical to the “timely and smooth development” of an offshore wind sector.
Its 15-year timeline suggests a short-term goal of 500MW by 2022, with 2.5GW in place by 2027 on the way to 5GW in 2032 – all the while driven by ever-lower costs, increasing investor confidence and growing public support.
The case for offshore wind for many years looked hard to make in and Indian market with good onshore wind and solar resources, whose costs have been driven steadily down by government and state-led auctions.
