By Christie Bailey
Copyright jerseyeveningpost
AN additional £250,000 will be set aside to develop plans for an offshore wind farm in Jersey’s territorial waters, if the 2026 Budget is approved.
The money would be used for “policy development” and comes shortly after Environment Minister Steve Luce told the Offshore Wind Review Panel that he intended to bring a proposition to the States Assembly in January on whether Jersey ought to pursue an offshore wind farm.
In a letter to the panel, Deputy Luce said: “I have reviewed the Assembly timetable, already busy with a number of important propositions, and in discussion with other Ministers and recognising the need to give Assembly Members adequate time to fully reflect on the recommendation, a debate will be scheduled for January 2026.”
Meanwhile, almost £1m has been spent so far on researching and developing plans for an offshore wind farm.
This week, the response to a request made under the Freedom of Information Law revealed that a total of £941,541 has been spent on the wind farm project since 2023.
The Carbon Neutral Roadmap, which was agreed in 2022, included proposals for examining options for utility scale renewable energy in Jersey.
The States Assembly approved a proposition to progress the next stage of the project in April last year.
If Budget is approved by the Assembly in December, £250,000 will be allocated to the wind farm project from the Climate Emergency Fund next year.
