Offshore Wind Power ~ P2: Offshore Wind Power

Unlike the wind turbine OEM segment, leading domestic component manufacturers possess the capability to supply global markets. Over the past two years, these industry leaders have accelerated their capacity expansion for offshore wind power. Currently, capacity ramp-up is concentrated primarily in segments involving high logistical and installation challenges—such as towers, monopile foundations, submarine cables, large castings, and blades. Among these, blades face the greatest transportation difficulty; consequently, major domestic and international manufacturers have largely completed capacity deployment for offshore wind blades. In contrast, dedicated offshore capacity for other components remains under rapid construction. Notably, large-scale offshore wind component manufacturing is highly dependent on scarce resources such as ports and shoreline access; enterprises possessing coastal land resources will hold a distinct advantage in scaling production capacity. Generally, gross margins for offshore wind components are significantly higher than those for onshore equivalents. Thus, rising offshore business share driven by capacity expansion will deliver strong earnings leverage for leading component suppliers. For instance, in the cable segment, representative companies achieved submarine cable gross margins exceeding 50% in 2020, whereas onshore cable margins were only slightly above 10%. Shifts in the sales mix between offshore and onshore products therefore provide new impetus for corporate profit growth. Market Opportunity According to IRENA projections, under a 1.5°C climate scenario, global offshore wind installed capacity will surpass 2,000 GW—accounting for nearly one-quarter of total global wind capacity—and impose new requirements on national offshore wind development. Over the next decade, Asia and Europe will drive most of the world’s offshore wind growth. In recent years, as onshore wind-rich regions become increasingly saturated, offshore wind has expanded rapidly and consistently maintained high growth rates. Per data released by the World Bank, China’s technical offshore wind development potential—within waters up to 200 km from shore and at depths within 1,000 m—is 2,982 GW. As of 2021, China’s cumulative installed offshore wind capacity stood at 26.38 GW, representing merely 0.9% of this potential. In terms of the share of cumulative onshore vs. offshore wind capacity, China’s cumulative offshore installed capacity reached 25.35 GW by end-2021, accounting for only 7.7% of its total cumulative wind capacity. China’s offshore wind development began in 2009, gained momentum in 2014, and in 2021 surpassed all other countries to rank first globally in cumulative installed capacity. ・In 2009, the National Energy Administration (NEA) issued the “Outline for Planning Offshore Wind Farm Projects”; in January 2012, it published the “12th Five-Year Plan for Wind Power Development”, both containing dedicated planning for offshore wind. ・In 2014, the NEA issued the “National Offshore Wind Power Development Plan (2014–2016)”, listing 44 offshore wind projects totaling 10.53 GW in its development program—marking the takeoff phase of China’s offshore wind industry. ・In 2017, China achieved a milestone with 1 GW of newly installed offshore wind capacity; in 2018, it overtook the UK to become the world’s largest installer of new offshore wind capacity. ・In 2021, spurred by the imminent expiration of national subsidies at year-end, China’s offshore wind new installations surged to 16.9 GW—a 339% year-on-year increase—while cumulative installed capacity reached 26.38 GW, securing the top global position. As of end-April 2021, China’s cumulative grid-connected offshore wind capacity exceeded 10 GW for the first time.

Dingwei Consulting Industry Report: Wind Power Industry Report

According to the Chinese Wind Energy Association (CWEA)—which uses turbine installation capacity as its statistical metric—by end-2022, China’s cumulative wind power installed capacity (excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) totaled 395.57 GW, with annual new installations amounting to 49.83 GW. Of this, onshore wind accounted for 44.67 GW (nearly 89.7% of total new installations), while offshore wind contributed 5.16 GW (10.3% of total new installations). Figure 14: Global & Chinese Annual New Offshore Wind Installations Based on the five major offshore wind bases’ installed capacity targets announced by China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), combined with provincial-level ‘14th Five-Year Plan for Renewable Energy Development’ documents from key offshore wind investment provinces, we conservatively project that China’s average annual offshore wind new installation capacity during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025) will be approximately 14 GW, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) exceeding 30% over the next three years. Figure 15: Offshore Wind Installation Targets by Key Provinces During the 14th Five-Year Plan Figure 16: Offshore Wind Installation Capacity Forecast for the 14th Five-Year Plan Period Globally, cumulative offshore wind capacity continues to rise: global cumulative offshore wind capacity reached 36.1 GW in 2020 and 57.2 GW in 2021. From 2011 to 2021, the CAGR of global cumulative offshore wind capacity was 30.1%. In terms of annual new installations, 2021 saw a sharp increase—21.1 GW—representing a 208% year-on-year growth. Figure 17: Global Cumulative Offshore Wind Capacity Figure 18: Global Annual New Offshore Wind Installations Domestically, China possesses vast untapped offshore wind development potential. Compared with onshore wind, offshore wind offers advantages including higher full-load operating hours and abundant resource availability. According to the World Bank’s January 2021 Global Offshore Wind Potential Map, China’s technically exploitable offshore wind resources total 2,429 GW—of which fixed-bottom offshore wind accounts for 1,321 GW and floating offshore wind for 1,108 GW. Moreover, China’s offshore wind sites are geographically closer to high electricity-demand regions along the eastern coast, eliminating curtailment concerns. Additionally, Balance-of-System (BOS) costs constitute a significantly larger share of total offshore wind project costs (47% for offshore vs. 22% for onshore), while turbine tower costs represent a markedly smaller share (5% for offshore vs. 14% for onshore), thereby easing cost pressure. Meanwhile, substructure/foundation (13%) and submarine cable (18%) costs account for relatively high proportions. Figure 19: Cost Breakdown by Component for an 8-MW Offshore Wind Turbine Figure 20: Cost Breakdown by Component for an 8-MW Offshore Wind Project (600 MW) 18-MW Turbine Project Share Turbine 1119 29.79% Tower 182 4.85% Turbine Cost 1301 34.64% Development Cost 85 2.26% Engineering & Management 2 0.05% Substructure 185 4.93% Foundation 289 7.69% Substructure + Foundation 474 12.62% Array Cable 112 2.98% Export Cable 370 9.85% Grid Connection 180 4.79% Electrical Infrastructure 662 17.63% Assembly & Installation 390 10.38%

South Africa's First Offshore Wind Farm Delayed as World Bank Highlights Potential

Sep 17, 2026

The Gagasi offshore wind project stalled pending turbine redesign, while a World Bank study estimates 95 gigawatts of potential capacity in South Africa.

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South Africa's First Offshore Wind Farm Delayed as World Bank Highlights Potential

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