The Irish government is set to develop a National Industrial Strategy for Offshore Wind, aimed at maximizing the economic opportunities arising from the production of offshore wind. The strategy will help Ireland meet its targets of 5GW by 2030 and a further 2GW of floating wind to be in development by 2030. The total target for offshore wind rises to at least 37GW by 2050.
To achieve these targets, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, stressed the need for a collaborative approach between the state and industry. He added that the strategy will ensure that Ireland fully captures the value of both the supply chain to deliver an offshore sector at scale and the routes to market for this renewable energy.
The National Industrial Strategy for Offshore Wind is expected to be published in Q1 2024 and will complement the suite of upcoming government policies led by the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications through the Offshore Wind Delivery Taskforce.
Minister Coveney stated that the recent geopolitical events on the European energy market have added real urgency to transitioning to clean, renewable energy. He added that it is essential to ensure that Ireland's enterprise sector is ready to contribute to the delivery of offshore wind, while also maximizing the economic benefits arising from the availability of abundant clean, renewable energy.
The announcement is an important step towards developing new, regionally dispersed economic opportunities based on offshore wind, and the government looks forward to working with colleagues across the industry to develop an industrial strategy that will deliver real long-term benefits to both the economy and society.
