It has not been a good three months for wind farm investment. In November German RWE utility subsidiary Innogy scrapped plans for what was then described as the world’s largest planned offshore wind farm – Atlantic Array.
This announcement was followed in December by Scottish Power’s cancellation of what was planned as the largest offshore wind farm in British waters.
In January RWE reduced planned capacity at the Triton Knoll North Sea wind farm site by 50 per cent. Wind farm contraction might soon only leave only Rutland Water left to boast about.
The reason for the collapse: wind is the most expensive, inefficient, uncompetitive way of generating electricity, prospering because of European Union fad, edict and massive subsidies. The private marketeers, more acutely tuned in than the free market ideologues, have had enough and are taking their toys home. ■