According to the latest world offshore wind market  forecast from Research and Markets, the last five years saw global capital expenditure increase significantly but over the next decade the spending will level off at approximately 15 billion per year.
New global installations are expected to average just over 3,000MW per year during this period.
The increase in turbine capacity is considered to be one of the key factors for reducing the cost of energy, and European offshore wind developers will be specifying larger wind turbines with capacities of 5MW or greater, the report said.
The size of the components for these future wind turbines will create unique challenges for installers, foundation designers and service providers.
As the industry seeks to reduce costs, a new generation of wind turbines designed around the unique requirements of the offshore environment is being rolled out with European project developers increasingly choosing to specify larger models with power outputs of 5 MW or more.
The size of the components for these future wind turbines creates a unique set of challenges for installers, foundation designers and service providers.
A new manufacturing supply chain focused on the Northern European markets is slowly developing to meet demand with significant investments being made in aspects such as port infrastructure and foundation manufacturing capacity.
At the same time, the report said it will be crucial to leverage the experience and additional supply chain capacity from the offshore oil and gas sector.