Europe is getting ready to add a significant amount of offshore wind capacity in 2026, with several major projects set to hit important milestones.

Wind drives offshore turbines, but it can also destroy them. As storms grow stronger and less predictable, the safety margins once built into turbine designs are under pressure. The question is no longer whether turbines can harness the wind, but whether they can survive it.

Lubrication plays a key role in the long-term performance of wind turbines. For critical drivetrain components like main shaft and generator bearings, selecting and applying the right grease can help minimise wear and extend maintenance.

What if clean energy could be smarter, more consistent, and take up less space? In southern Sweden, a new hybrid park is putting that idea into practice. By combining wind and solar on the same site, it’s delivering more reliable power, and benefits beyond the carbon savings.

Among the various issues that can plague wind turbine gearbox bearings, premature failures with white etching cracks (WECs) stand out as particularly serious. Understanding the drivers of WEC-related failures, and implementing effective countermeasures, is key to extending gearbox bearing life and maintaining operational efficiency.

With over 40 GW of offshore wind in development, including half from floating projects, Scotland is fast becoming the world’s proving ground for next-generation renewables. Backed by billions in investment, the country is now moving from early demonstration to large-scale deployment.