By 2028, the global installed capacity of offshore wind power will be nearly 160GW

According to Wood Mackenzie, the next decade will be a new chapter for the wind energy industry, with offshore wind's share of the annual global wind market expected to rise to 25%
by 2028, up from 10% last year.

Over the past 10 years, the onshore wind industry has matured
.
As onshore wind and solar become more competitive and suppliers will consolidate further, this maturity will continue
in the new decade.

Meanwhile, WoodMac found that offshore wind capacity is expected to grow sevenfold
by 2028.
Of the wind power projects for which contracts have already been awarded, more than 80%
are expected to be installed between 2019 and 2025.

Declining LCOE

Dan Shreve of Wood Mackenzie said that while the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for onshore wind will continue to fall over the next decade, no amount of progress in the industry in turbine tower design, blade materials or controls can really be a
game-changer.

Currently, breakthrough technological advances often belong to offshore wind, not onshore wind
.

In recent years, LCOE's interest in offshore wind has declined
significantly as companies have invested in dedicated equipment and designs for offshore wind.
This trend will continue in the 2020s as the cost of technology continues to fall
.

Wood Mackenzie expects LCOE for offshore wind to fall by half between 2019 and 2028, with Europe leading the way
.

Looking ahead, global offshore wind capacity will reach nearly 160 GW by 2028, up from 22 GW
at the end of 2018.

Floating wind power

It is expected that over the next decade, most of the growth in offshore wind will be concentrated in areas
suitable for offshore wind fixed at the bottom.
Floating offshore wind is expected to account for only a small fraction
of offshore wind energy in 2019-2028.

However, floating offshore wind is gaining momentum
.
If new markets enter the offshore wind sector and countries form new regulatory frameworks, up to 10 GW of floating wind will be deployed in 10 markets by 2030
.

Policy is a source of
uncertainty across the industry.
Offshore wind pipelines are piling up globally as offshore wind targets expand, but so far only nine countries have regulatory frameworks
in place.

Due to the lack of government commitment, there is still uncertainty
about the pace and scope of offshore wind deployment.
In order for offshore wind to go global and become a mainstream source of electricity, more governments need to provide a clear, stable path
to the market.