RenewableUK, the trade and professional association for the wind, wave and tidal energy industries, has welcomed statistics from the Department of Energy and Climate Change showing a significant increase in the amount of electricity generated by wind in the first quarter of this year.
Figures for the first three months of 2012 show a 46.8% increase in the amount of electricity generated by wind power compared to the same period last year, due to higher wind speeds and more wind turbines being installed onshore and offshore.
The statistics also show that in the first quarter of the year, the quantity of electricity generated by offshore wind turbines increased by 49.8% compared to the same period a year ago, as the sector expands rapidly.
RenewableUK’s Director of Policy, Dr Gordon Edge, said:
“The amount of clean electricity being generated for British households by wind energy is growing year on year. Every time a wind turbine is installed, onshore and offshore, we move a step closer to energy independence – a step closer to escaping the increases in all our electricity bills caused by the unpredictable price of fossil fuel imports.
Wind energy gives us great value for money – new statistics from the independent regulator Ofgem show that it costs us just 3p per household per day. That small price is well worth paying to secure a supply of clean electricity for future generations.”
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Offshore WIND staff, June 05, 2012; Image: ge