Eleven leading offshore wind developers, including bp, Shell, and Ørsted, are partnering with the Carbon Trust to make future offshore wind farms more sustainable. The Offshore Wind Sustainability Joint Industry Programme aims to develop the first industry-backed methodology to measure and address the carbon emissions associated with offshore wind farms throughout their lifecycle. The methodology will cover emissions from manufacturing materials and installing wind farms, providing a standardised approach for developers to calculate their carbon impact and encourage comparability across assets.
The programme will support the offshore wind industry in scaling sustainably, enabling it to make a significant contribution towards meeting global Net Zero targets by 2050. With 55GW of offshore wind capacity installed globally by the end of 2021 and the need for an additional 70-80GW installed every year from 2030 to achieve Net Zero by 2050, a collaborative industry effort is necessary to increase the transparency of supply chain emissions and accelerate engagement across the value chain.
The first project under the Offshore Wind Sustainability Joint Industry Programme will develop the standardised methodology, engage with the industry to improve data quality and availability, and identify key carbon emission drivers and hotspots in the offshore wind value chain and wind farm life cycle. The programme officially begins in January 2023, with the methodology expected to be released for industry use by 2025.
