Offshore wind installations lag government targets

States are ramping up targets, but complex permitting systems constrain developers’ ability to deliver projects at pace, says Global Wind Energy Council

Global installations of offshore wind power capacity are failing to keep pace with rising government targets as the sector faces challenges including complex permitting procedures, supply chain issues and an “overheating” market for seabed leases, according to industry group the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). Governments around the world have embarked on a “race to the top” in terms of setting offshore wind targets, but there is a widening gap between these goals and actual capacity installations, the GWEC says in its Global Wind Report 2022. “Global governments urgently need to put in place the policy and regulatory frameworks to deliver against their promises,” it says. “There is a gro