Asks the fishing sector for “rigor in statements and a responsible and constructive vision of the future” and advocates the coexistence of activities
MADRID, 15 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Offshore Wind Forum, the association that represents more than 250 organizations in the sector, considers that the Marine Space Management Plans (POEM) on the Spanish coasts are “necessary” and determine an “adequate” fit between the different activities of the environment marine, such as fishing or navigation, among others, as reported by the Forum on Wednesday.
The association has ensured that the POEMs, approved by the Council of Ministers at the beginning of March, are “a decisive step” to deploy offshore wind power in Spain. In addition, they explain that the process of preparing these plans has been “open, transparent, long and exhaustive” and that it has had “full communication” between the actors involved.
For this reason, the Offshore Wind Fund has assessed the resulting area as “sufficient” and “reasonable” to deploy its activity contemplated for 2030 in the Offshore Wind Roadmap, although it has highlighted that the approved order eliminates the exclusivity nature of use and reduces the areas compatible with offshore wind farms by more than 38% compared to what was initially identified in the draft submitted to public consultation.
In this sense, they ensure that the main reason is to “facilitate coexistence with fishing activities”, that the Roadmap contemplates an objective of installing floating wind power of up to 3 gigawatts (GW) until 2030 and that the parks planned for that year they will occupy 0.99% of the total surface area of Spanish waters.
Likewise, the Forum ensures that it is “essential” to develop a local market in floating offshore wind power so that it generates a driving effect on the economy and industry of coastal regions, because Spain is “leader in R D I and technological development” in offshore wind power, for being the country that currently has the most patents for floating solutions, they explain.
As a result of the planned activity, it is estimated that during the 2025-2050 period the sectoral contribution of offshore wind energy will amount to 49,607 million euros, of which 40,874 million would be the contribution of the agents that carry out activity in the sector (impact direct), and 8,733 million would come from the drag effect that this industry would have on the rest of the Spanish economy (indirect impact).
Faced with the protests carried out by different sectors against the POEMs, the association considers that these “are anticipating hypothetical damage to the fishing activity”, because “the specific projects are not currently known, the number of wind farms planned, their size, their length of machines, their reserved area, their technology”.
In this sense, from the Forum they ask for “moderation in the actions, rigor in the statements and a responsible and constructive vision of the future”. In addition, they believe that once the auctions are awarded and the projects begin, “positive fishing-wind coexistence schemes will be achieved for both parties.”
