Netherlands: GROW consortium aims for cost of offshore wind at 7 eurocent per kWh by 2030

GROW, or "Growth through Research, development & demonstration in Offshore Wind", will contribute to the Netherlands' goals for a renewable and independent energy supply. Over the next five years, GROW will help introduce innovations to the market. GROW will thus further strengthen the Dutch offshore wind sector, leading to significant growth in knowledge-intensive employment. GROW will spend at least 100 million euro on research, development and demonstration projects over the next five years.

GROW is a consortium of companies and research institutes in the Netherlands. The founders are Delft Offshore Turbine, Deltares, ECN, Eneco, Lagerwey, LM Wind Power, Royal IHC, RWE, Seaway Heavy Lifting, Shell, Sif, TenneT, TNO, TU Delft, Van Oord, and Volker Stevin International.

The mission of GROW is "twenty for seven": The GROW consortium of around twenty organizations in the Dutch offshore wind sector will contribute to cost reductions to reach a cost of seven eurocents per kWh by 2030. At this cost level, offshore wind will compete with other renewable and fossil energy sources – without having to be subsidized.

GROW will pursue technical innovations that bring the cost of offshore wind further down and contribute to the reliability and stability of the entire energy system. GROW will also improve symbiosis with other sectors at sea (oil & gas, fishery, shipping and tourism) and will research and further limit the environmental effects of offshore wind.

GROW is the successor of the FLOW, Far and Large Offshore Wind, research program. Over the last five years, the thirteen Dutch companies and research institutes of FLOW brought the costs of offshore wind down by 20 percent, and supported several innovations in reaching the market. Tomorrow during the Winddagen 2016 congress, the program's completion will be commemorated with a book presented to Minister Kamp, which includes a selection of FLOW's results.

GROW will work closely together with the TKI Wind op Zee. The GROW consortium is currently in discussions with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Topsector Energy to explore options for government support and cooperation. GROW's first projects are expected to commence in the fall of 2016.