Renewable energy projects worth £81 billion proposed

More than £81 billion worth of renewable energy projects are proposed by 2025, representing nearly half of all infrastructure spending in the UK, industry data has revealed today (30 October).

Barbour ABI, provider of construction data to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the Government, has released new data revealing a total of 405 renewable energy projects in the pipeline. Worth a combined total of £81 billion, these projects now account for approximately 47 per cent of proposed UK infrastructure projects.

All but 17 of these schemes are new build, indicating the significance of the renewable energy sector within construction, with proposed projects including the £25 billion Severn Barrage, phases one to six of the East Anglia One off-shore wind farm worth £10.8 billion collectively and the £3.75 billion Hornsea off-shore wind farm.

Michael Dall, lead economist at Barbour ABI, said: “The scale of renewable energy projects proposed in the UK is staggering and investment in this sector shows no signs of slowing.

“According to our latest Economic & Construction Market Review, utilities were the major infrastructure project type in September and this is no surprise given the number and value of contracts being awarded which is due, among other things, to the levels of subsidy currently provided by the Government.

“With a number of these projects already confirmed and many more at early stages of planning, the future of renewable energy construction in the UK looks bright.”