Out to sea again December 2008
Existing offshore wind farms can virtually all be classified as pilot projects, allowing turbine producers, project developers and utilities to gain experience in this new segment of the wind energy sector. Offshore wind installed capacity stood at a mere 1 percent of total globally installed wind capacity by the end of 2007. Rabobank believes this situation is changing as we speak. In 2008, several commercial-scale projects are coming online in Western Europe, the focal point for offshore wind development. In the years to follow, the amount of commissioned capacity in Europe will grow further, and is expected to reach a level of 2.7 GW in 2010, 20 GW in 2015 and 39 GW in 2020. At an estimated investment level of EUR 4 million per MW, the total investments needed for new offshore wind farm installations in Europe are expected to rise from around EUR 1.4 billion in 2008 to a level between EUR 15 billion and EUR 20 billion annually in the period of 2015 to 2020 (in today’s money).
In 2006,Rabobank was the first bank to commit to a full non-recourse project financing for an offshore wind farm (the Dutch Q7 project, officially opened in June 2008 and then renamed to Princess Amalia wind farm).Rabobank is now actively involved in the European offshore wind segment.
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