14/01/2026 | Offshore wind
Offshore wind industry welcomes record-breaking auction results which will trigger further investment in factories and jobs
14 January 2026 - Offshore Wind Industry Council press release
Commenting on the results of Allocation Round 7 announced by the Government today, in which the UK secured a record amount of new offshore wind capacity (8.4GW), Adam Morrison, Industry Co-Chair of the Offshore Wind Industry Council and Ocean Winds UK Country Manager said:
"Whilst a lot of the focus of today’s announcement has been on the benefits these wind farms bring by cutting bills and strengthening our energy security, there are also substantial long term benefits for the UK's economic confidence. The results send a clear signal to investors that the UK continues to be a world leader in offshore wind, and today's announcement will directly trigger investment in factories and jobs across the UK needed to build and operate these projects.
"Whilst every one of these wind farms will benefit UK billpayers, we are determined to see further value for UK consumers in the coming years and to keep building on the economic contribution that our sector makes. The offshore wind sector will be working with Government, regulators, and all levels of the supply chain to achieve this. The UK needs vast amounts of new electricity generation to meet the demands of new data centres, housing and industry, and offshore wind will play a critical role in meeting that need cost-effectively.”
Andrew Elmes, Supply Chain Vice-Chair of the Offshore Wind Industry Council and Head of Government Affairs (UK and Ireland) for Siemens Energy said:
"Thanks to the record volume of winning projects in this auction round, over the coming years we would hope to see billions of pounds of supply chain investment flow into all corners of the UK to deliver these offshore wind farms. As the bulk of offshore wind infrastructure is out at sea, the scale up of associated jobs and businesses will be in coastal areas across Scotland, England and Wales and should support local economic revitalisation, as we have already seen in regions such as the Humber and East Anglia.
"The UK is world-leading in many aspects of offshore wind development, notably the manufacturing and installation of cutting-edge turbine technology, the cables which transmit electricity to shore, foundations to anchor floating turbines to the seabed, as well as operating and maintaining the assets out at sea. It’s in these specialisms that we're expecting to see opportunities for new investment in the UK. If we maintain the momentum that this auction has boosted, industry analysis suggests that the offshore wind supply chain could provide a £25bn boost to the UK economy over the next ten years.”
The UK’s offshore wind sector already supports 40,000 jobs, and this is expected to increase to around 100,000 by 2030. More information on the industry’s employment statistics is available here.
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- The Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC) is a senior Government and industry forum established in 2013 to drive the development of the world-leading offshore wind sector in the UK.