HEADLINE: “The Netherlands will slash its offshore wind ambitions by as much as 40% as the government no longer finds it viable to aim for 50 GW of generation capacity by 2040.” By Doug Sheridan

The new target will be in range of 30 to 40 GW, higher than the current level of just over 5 GW, but below what was envisioned only a few years ago, according to a letter written by Sophie Hermans…”

Bloomberg writes, the Netherlands will slash its offshore wind ambitions by as much as 40% as the government no longer finds it viable to aim for 50 GW of generation capacity by 2040.

The new target will be in the range of 30 to 40 GW, higher than the current level of just over 5 GW, but below what was envisioned only a few years ago, according to a letter written by Sophie Hermans, the Minister for Climate and Green Growth, to the Dutch Parliament. Hermans described the previous target as “not realistic."

It's the latest setback for the offshore wind sector, which has seen its outlook clouded by soaring costs in recent years. The revised goal was seen as more doable for the county to scale up offshore wind power generation.

While offshore wind is still seen as essential for the Netherlands future energy strategy, costs have risen while power demand growth has lagged behind expectations, according to the letter. Offshore wind farms in the country are mostly built without subsidies and are usually underpinned by contracts between generators and industrial users.

But demand for such deals has declined. Earlier this year, BASF SE recorded a €300 million loss when it handed back an ownership stake in a Dutch offshore wind farm it had purchased a year earlier. The decision came after the company found that power consumption would likely be slower than previously anticipated.

Governments and developers had expected that production of green hydrogen using electricity would lead to a boom in demand. But the high cost of producing the green fuel has stifled investment.

Our Take 1: The keepers of the energy transition narrative like to pretend that the global march toward Net Zero remains in tact and on track. In reality, it's really just China that's driving global adds of supposedly green renewables at this point. But the walk back of plans in Europe, North America and other parts of the world are the real story.

Our Take 2: "Not realistic" is right, Minister. And that applies to many, many other aspects of Europe Net Zero dream as