The UK is currently one of the world’s leading offshore wind markets, but international momentum behind net zero means favourable policy environments exist in other jurisdictions where SSE Renewables can deploy its developer capability.
The acquisition of a Southern European development platform in 2022 increased SSE’s secured pipeline from 11GW to around 14GW.
The platform has 3.8GW of onshore wind pipeline and prospects and a further 1.4GW of hybridisation potential in co-located solar across Spain, France, Italy and Greece. Around 2.4GW is secured pipeline in Southern Europe, with material land or permitting rights and construction scheduled to get under way on projects in France and Spain in Summer 2023.
In Japan, the SSE-Pacifico platform is preparing projects for offshore auctions in a market with huge potential whilst in Northern Europe and the US, SSE is working with local partners to gear up for future auctions.
Closer to home, Coire Glas, a pumped storage hydro project that has long been on the drawing board awaiting a supportive policy environment for long-duration electricity storage, moved a step closer to reality in March 2022 with a commitment by SSE to £100m of exploratory work. The project, which received planning consent from the Scottish Government in 2020, would more than double Britain’s total current electricity storage capacity. Subject to good development progress and prevailing policy, SSE hopes to make a final investment decision in 2024.