The UK will lose its lead in annual offshore wind installations this year, with Germany expected to set to add 2,071MW of capacity. China will move up to second place in the rankings, according to a report from GlobalData.

6 May 2015 – Germany will become the world’s leading market for annual offshore wind turbine installations in 2015, with the country set to add an impressive 2,071 Megawatts (MW) this year, an almost fourfold increase from the 529MW added in 2014, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.

The company’s latest report states that global annual offshore wind installations will more than double, from 1,681MW in 2014 to 3,903MW in 2015, with a dip to 3,255MW forecast for 2016.

Ankit Mathur, GlobalData’s Practice Head for Power, says that while Germany’s annual offshore installations will soar this year, UK additions will remain relatively steady, decreasing marginally from 813MW in 2014 to 801MW in 2015. Furthermore, the UK will slip down to third place in the rankings, as China surges into second position with 817MW in 2015.

Mathur explains: “Germany’s huge increase in offshore installations is attributable to several offshore wind projects scheduled to come online in 2015. China is also planning an array of offshore wind projects this year, which will see it overtake the UK for annual installations.

“Additionally, the next few years will see China maintain its annual offshore wind installations around the 1 Gigawatt mark, while the UK will observe relatively lower installations until 2018, when the country’s next offshore growth spurt is expected.”

The report also states that last year saw order intake for offshore wind turbines rise at a blockbuster Compound Annual Growth Rate of 367 per cent, from 288MW in 2013 to 1,346MW in 2014.

In terms of company share, Siemens remained the market leader in 2014 with an offshore order intake of 690MW, followed by Areva with 350MW, according to GlobalData.

For further information, please visit www.globaldata.com or download the report.