The report - entitled ‘Sea Wind Europe’ predicts the European wind industry is about to expand hugely, with major construction projects off countries including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, France and Spain. It says wind could supply almost a third of all Europe’s electricity needs including industry, service sector and domestic needs - a comparable amount to that currently supplied by the entire EU nuclear industry.

Researchers at the respected Garrad Hassan group examined wind speeds, sea depths, economic infrastructure and advancements in offshore wind technology. They concluded that as many as 50,000 turbines could be built in European seas, generating the equivalent of 720 billion domestic units of electricity - enough to power well over 150 million homes.

• Increased research and development support for offshore wind and other renewable energy technologies in order to bring a renewable future closer to reality;
• The redirection of EU energy subsidies away from dangerous and dirty energy sources such as coal and nuclear and towards clean, green renewable energies such as offshore wind.