Governments across the world should expedite the development and construction of offshore wind farms to help shield their economies from the impacts of future energy crises, according to a new report from the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC).
GWEC’s 2026 Global Offshore Wind Report set out an eight-point action plan for policymakers to ensure offshore wind projects are prioritised for investment as nationally significant projects in planning and procurement frameworks.
In 2025, more than 9GW of new offshore wind capacity was grid-connected worldwide, enough to power over 10m homes. This made 2025 the third-highest year for new installations, bringing the cumulative total installed worldwide to 92.5GW, equivalent to powering over 100m homes.
“With more than 50GW of offshore wind projects in construction around the world, annual installations are expected to double in 2026, triple by 2031, and surpass 50GW per year by 2035,” the report said.
Predicted to reach a compound average annual growth rate of 24% between 2026 and 2030, offshore wind is set to become one of the world’s fastest-growing mainstream energy technologies. More than 327GW of new offshore wind capacity is forecast to be added in the next decade, taking global offshore wind capacity to 420GW by the end of 2035.
“We expect to see exceptional growth over the next decade, leading to a quadrupling of the world’s offshore wind capacity. Built at scale, offshore wind is a unique strategic asset and one of the best available utility-scale renewable power sources for a clean and secure power system offering high, predictable electricity generation,” said Rebecca Williams, deputy CEO of GWEC.
“In less than five years, we have faced two major crises caused by continued reliance on imported fuels. It’s now abundantly clear that we’re in a race to electrify our economies and deploy as much reliable, homegrown renewable energy as possible before the next crisis erupts. Building an arc of offshore wind turbines along a country’s coast is a way to guard against future supply shocks,” Williams added.
China led annual installations for the eighth consecutive year, commissioning 6.6GW in 2025, while Europe commissioned nearly 2GW – 1GW in the UK, 500MW in Germany, and 400MW in France. China accounts for 52% of the global offshore wind market.
The GWEC report said that despite progress, offshore wind deployment is not progressing as quickly as it should. The amount of offshore wind procured in auctions during 2025 was 11.4 GW, just one-fifth of the record set in 2024. Around 25GW of projects worldwide outside China are still awaiting a financial investment decision.
GWEC’s action plan calls on governments to fast-track offshore wind as critical energy infrastructure, strengthen government-industry partnerships, counter misinformation, deliver auction frameworks, speed up permitting, increase financing, scale supply chains, and pursue industrial electrification.
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