Don’t drift from offshore wind leadership

Why offshore wind matters, and why The Crown Estate is developing a “sat nav for the seabed”

Credit: The Crown Estate/Ben Barden Photography Ltd

09 Mar 2026

In just 25 years, the UK has built an offshore wind industry from scratch – and the benefits for the public are real.

Each new gigawatt (that’s about enough power for a million homes) of offshore wind adds an estimated £2-3bn to the economy.¹ Between 2010 and 2023, wind generation helped shield consumers from volatile gas prices, saving households around £104bn.²

Today, our seas are home to nearly 3,000 turbines³ – enough to power over 16 million homes – and the sector supports some 40,000 jobs, set to rise to 94,000 by 2030.⁴

And the momentum continues. The latest Contracts for Difference auction secured a further 8GW of capacity – a major step in reinforcing the UK’s clean energy leadership, unlocking billions more in investment and thousands of new jobs across the country.

Yet the UK still imports around 42 per cent of its energy.⁵ This leaves households exposed to price fluctuations and global shocks from geopolitics to extreme weather.

“Put simply: every extra unit of clean power we generate at home is a unit we no longer have to import – cutting costs, strengthening energy security and insulating consumers from global shocks.”
Gus Jaspert, MD of Marine at The Crown Estate

The most reliable route to stable, affordable power is a clean, home-grown energy system. Scaling offshore wind and other renewables, alongside a smarter grid, can cut exposure to price volatility while supporting economic growth across coastal and industrial communities.

At the centre of this is the stewardship of the seabed. Created by an Act of Parliament, The Crown Estate is a national landowner with a £15bn diverse portfolio of property and land, including the seabed and much of the coastline around England and Wales. We have a clear mandate to act independently and commercially to deliver long-term value for the nation and return all our profits to HM Treasury for the benefit of public spending.

This enables us to take a strategic approach: working with government and industry, investing in data and evidence to reduce risk, and running transparent leasing rounds that give developers the certainty to invest for decades.

Like any market, there will always be fluctuations in costs and demand, but scaling back our offshore wind ambition now would be a serious error – locking in greater dependence on carbon-intensive imports and weakening our long-term energy security. We should be proud of our world-leading position and not be cowed by detractors. The prize lies in staying the course.

Sustained growth depends on clear, consistent policy direction, sufficient grid capacity, and long-term investment confidence – areas where the Civil Service and regulators play a pivotal role. Effective planning and consenting, robust regulation, as well as well-designed procurement, all underpin delivery at scale.

“The Routemap is intended to become a shared national resource – a tool to support coordinated delivery and enable departments and organisations with a stake in the energy transition and the marine environment to engage with the data and evidence that informs the long-term planning needed to underpin secure, home-grown clean energy.”
Gus Jaspert – MD of Marine at The Crown Estate

Progress is already underway. On the grid, government is working with Ofgem and the National Energy System Operator to maximise existing capacity and plan a system fit for the future. The Contracts for Difference scheme is being updated to strengthen investment incentives and support projects.

The Crown Estate is committed to working with government and industry to create the conditions necessary for the next phase of growth. New powers approved by Parliament last year expand our ability to invest in clean energy and other priority sectors such as science and innovation, housing and regenerative agriculture.

We are using these tools now: unlocking early-stage projects through a £50m Supply Chain Accelerator and committing £350m via our Supply Chain Investment Programme in coordination with Great British Energy and others.⁶

We are improving access to spatial information and providing long-term visibility of opportunities with a new Marine Delivery Routemap – a “sat nav for the seabed” – a unique mapping and planning tool that can help identify how marine industries and nature can grow together. Our seabed is becoming increasingly crowded. Offshore wind must co-exist alongside cables and pipelines, shipping lanes, fisheries, defence activity and marine protected areas. A shared spatial evidence base will help manage these competing demands, leading to smoother delivery, stronger environmental outcomes and faster progress towards a more secure and affordable energy system.

Offshore wind has already transformed what is possible for the UK. The next phase is about delivering faster and in balance with nature and other marine users, so people across the nation continue to see and feel the benefits.

By staying the course, we can ensure the seabed remains a source of national pride, prosperity and security for generations to come.

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