Investors ‘optimistic’ about onshore wind growth

Opportunities for renewables getting “better and better” says infrastructure group

More onshore wind could be developed in the UK without the need for public subsidy, according to a leading investment group.

Speaking to Utility Week, InfraRed Capital Partner’s director of infrastructure, Richard Crawford, said he can see the growth of onshore wind in the UK without subsidies, as technology costs continue to fall and windfarms become more efficient.

Crawford said the market for buying onshore windfarms in Europe continues to grow. “We still remain optimistic about further developments because costs are coming down,” he said.

“The opportunities for the government to develop more renewable energy at lower cost are getting better and better,” Crawford continued. “In France, the government is increasing renewables and reducing nuclear. If you look at Scandinavia and in particular Sweden, there’s also a strong drive towards renewables.”

InfraRed Capital is the investment manager for The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG), the listed renewables company, which currently owns 55 wind and solar developments with a generating capacity of 754MW in the UK and abroad.

Jaz Bains, group commercial director at Renewable Energy Systems (RES), which oversees TRIG’s operating portfolio, added that TRIG is evaluating an investment in a 20MW battery project to provide balancing services to the grid. RES, which is the developer of the project, has also recently won a tender to provide a 35 MW storage system with the National Grid, to provide enhanced frequency response. 

“Our long-term interest in the development of storage is about managing the intermittency of renewables,” said Crawford. “The more storage and the more flexibility there is, the further renewable energy can prosper.”