UK Wind Power Hits Record High as Energy Security Risks Mount
- U.K. wind generation reached a record 86.4 TWh in 2025, supplying 29.5% of the country’s electricity.
- Wind output surged again in early 2026, helping reduce Britain’s exposure to soaring fossil-fuel prices during the Middle East energy crisis.
- The U.K. has more than 50 GW of onshore wind in its development portfolio and a 93 GW offshore wind pipeline spanning projects at multiple stages
The United Kingdom has dramatically increased its wind energy capacity over the last decade, producing record levels of wind power in 2025. With several more projects in the pipeline, wind power is expected to contribute a significant share of the U.K. energy mix by the end of the decade, supporting diversification aims and boosting energy security.
In the U.K., in 2025, wind was the largest single renewable electricity source, according to data from the National Energy System Operator (Neso). Together, wind, solar, hydro, and biomass generated over 127 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity across the U.K., contributing about 44% percent of the country’s electricity, up from 50.5 percent in 2024. Meanwhile, fossil fuels contributed 32.3 percent of electricity generation, almost entirely from natural gas.
Wind generated more than 85 TWh, or almost 30 percent of Great Britain’s electricity last year, with offshore wind generating a record 17.7 percent of the U.K.’s electricity mix, at 52 TWh, according to data from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
“We secured a record-breaking amount of offshore wind in the last round, which will bring over £30 billion in private investment to the U.K., and it’s essential that we continue to procure good value renewables,” RenewableUK’s CEO Tara Singh stated of the results. “The last auction showed onshore wind is half the cost of new gas plants and offshore wind is 40% cheaper,” Singh added.
In the first three months of 2026, power from wind farms rose by 31 percent, compared to the same period in 2025, according to London Stock Exchange data. This helped increase overall clean energy production by 16 percent from the previous year, and total power output by 4 percent.
The increase in wind power production has helped the U.K. to diversify its energy mix and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. The accelerated rollout of more renewable energy capacity is expected to boost the country’s energy security. Already this year, higher levels of clean energy output have helped the U.K. avoid being hit so hard by the global oil and gas shortages created by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key trade corridor connecting Europe and Asia.
Oil and gas prices have risen sharply in recent months due to trade restrictions, which have led to a global fuel shortage. The impact of ongoing geopolitical disruption on energy trade has made it increasingly evident that overreliance on fossil fuels could undermine energy security for many countries. While several countries around the world have been scrambling for alternative fuel supplies, the U.K. has benefited from growth in its clean power sector in recent years, helping shield it from the crisis.
Plans to develop new onshore wind projects in England have reached their highest annual level in a decade, with 45 applications for new wind farms submitted in the year to March, at a rate of around 36 MW a month, the Guardian recently reported. Onshore wind power capacity entering the planning system has more than tripled since Labour lifted the de facto ban on onshore wind in England in 2024, which had been in place since 2015. The U.K. onshore wind farm project pipeline at any stage of development now stands at over 50 GW, growing by over 3 GW in the last year.
Scotland dominates the U.K. onshore wind capacity, as the development of new projects was never restricted under the Conservatives’ de facto ban, as energy planning is a devolved matter handled separately by the Scottish Government. Scotland accounts for 75 percent of the U.K.’s current onshore wind portfolio, followed by Wales with 12 percent, England with 8 percent, and Northern Ireland with 5 percent.
In January, German chancellor Friedrich Merz said he wants the North Sea to become the “largest reservoir of clean energy worldwide”. This comes as part of plans between the U.K. and nine other European countries to accelerate the deployment of offshore wind farms in the 2030s and to build a power grid in the North Sea to transform the ageing oil basin into a “clean energy reservoir”. The group plans to construct wind farms at sea that directly connect to various countries via high-voltage subsea cables, aiming to provide 100 GW of power, or enough electricity capacity to power 143 million homes.
The Crown Estate’s latest U.K. Offshore Wind Report, published in May, highlighted a 93 GW pipeline of fixed and floating offshore wind capacity in the U.K., in planning or with identified future potential. Approximately 40,000 people are employed in the U.K. offshore wind sector, a figure that could rise to as many as 94,000 by 2030. In addition, in 2025 alone, offshore wind displaced an estimated 20.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.
The U.K. has accelerated the development of its wind energy capacity in recent years, with a substantial project pipeline for the coming years. The expansion of the U.K.’s onshore and offshore wind capacity is expected to help the country diversify its energy mix and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, thereby boosting energy security over the coming decade.
By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com
Ørsted Gets Favorable Tax Opinion on Two UK Offshore Wind Farms
Danish offshore wind giant Ørsted has received a final opinion supporting its approach to the taxation of two major UK offshore wind farms, potentially providing a framework for resolving similar disputes involving other projects.
An advisory commission established under the EU Arbitration Convention concluded that Walney Extension and Hornsea 1 have genuine legal and economic purposes and should therefore be taxed primarily in the country where the projects are located.
For the two wind farms, that means taxation principally falls to the UK over the projects’ operating lives as they generate electricity and revenue.
The opinion is significant for Ørsted because it broadly validates the tax principles the company has used for the projects and addresses the risk of the same income being taxed in both Denmark and the UK.
The dispute stretches back more than a decade. Ørsted approached the Danish Tax Agency and Britain’s HM Revenue & Customs in 2015 seeking clarification over how taxation rights should be divided between the two countries. After the authorities failed to reach an agreement, the matter was referred to an advisory commission in 2023.
Ørsted said the outcome will result in a small upward adjustment to its Danish tax position, including associated interest. The company said the amount is already covered by provisions made for uncertain tax positions and is expected to be largely offset over time by lower taxes in the UK.
The financial impact therefore appears limited, while the wider significance may lie in how the opinion is applied to other Ørsted offshore wind projects facing similar Danish tax assessments.
Ørsted said it will now discuss those projects with the Danish Tax Agency and expects any resolution to follow the same principles established in the Walney Extension and Hornsea 1 case. It will also hold discussions with HMRC over implementation of the opinion.
The decision comes as offshore wind developers across Europe face heightened scrutiny over project economics, financing costs and regulatory frameworks. Greater certainty over cross-border taxation could reduce another area of financial uncertainty for Ørsted’s UK offshore wind portfolio.
Ørsted has 11 GW of installed offshore wind capacity globally and another 7.2 GW under construction. The Danish group reported operating profit excluding new partnerships and cancellation fees of DKK 25.1 billion in 2025.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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