The Danish energy group Ørsted (formerly known as Dong Energy) has released its operational and financial results for 2017 and announced it will increase the share of green power and heat generation in its mix to at least 95% in 2023 (from 64% in 2017). Carbon emissions are expected to be reduced by 96% by 2023 compared with the 2006 levels (67% as of 2017). The company will convert its existing CHP plants to biomass and will install about one million smart meters. The company's ambition is to reach an installed offshore wind capacity of 11-12 GW by the end of 2025. Offshore wind is expected to account for 85-90% of the company's total gross investment over the 2018-2023 period.
Ørsted's current installed offshore wind capacity stood at 3.9 GW in 2017 (3.6 GW in 2016 and 3 GW in 2015) and generated 8.5 TWh in 2017 (+42%), i.e. 51% of the group's power generation in 2017. This higher wind generation is due to newly constructed offshore wind parks in Germany (+114% in German wind power generation to 1.5 TWh) and the United Kingdom (+45% to 4.5 TWh) and higher wind speeds in 2017. In Denmark, wind power generation rose by 14% to 2.5 TWh. Ørsted's thermal power generation declined by 2.4% to 8.2 TWh in 2017. The group's power sales increased by 2.7% to nearly 38 TWh in 2017, while gas sales contracted by 9.5% to 136 TWh.