UK
Ireland
Scotland
London
Construction News
23/01/2017
'Huge Opportunities' Available In UK Offshore Wind Sector
Industry experts are claiming there is a "huge opportunity" to boost the UK's offshore wind sector.
Brian McFarlane, Head of Projects - Offshore Development at SSE, said projects such as the £2.6 billion Beatrice scheme, as well as the Dogger Bank and Seagreen projects, could help boost the UK's domestic supply chain.
"There is a strong pipeline of offshore wind developments in the UK, but many of these are significantly larger than projects like (588MW, 84-turbine) Beatrice," he said.
"The vast scale of these projects can help to drive deeper cost reductions and really develop the domestic supply chain."
However, Mr McFarlane added both industry and Government needed to re-examine the Contract's for Difference (CfD) framework to "ensure it can accommodate these larger projects whilst delivering more competition in the CfD auctions".
"The good news is that there are relatively simple tweaks that can be made to do this which will mean growth in jobs and business developing clean, secure and affordable energy for the years ahead," he said.
Andrew Jamieson, Chief Executive of the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, added: "The costs of energy from offshore wind have fallen to such a degree in recent years that it is rapidly becoming not only the nation's primary means of delivering its carbon reduction targets through the coming decades, but a huge opportunity to export energy across Europe and goods and services all around the world.
"That growth is driving opportunity in many areas, and we now have the chance to develop the companies, the workforce, the skills and expertise that will do for the UK, and for Scotland, what the oil and gas industries have done so successfully for the past half-century."
Both Mr McFarlane and Mr Jamieson were speaking ahead of an "Industry Leaders' Debate” at Scottish Renewables' Offshore Wind Conference, which will be held in Glasgow on Tuesday, 24 January.
Lindsay Roberts, Senior Policy Manager at Scottish Renewables, added: "Offshore wind is a hugely promising sector in which the UK currently enjoys a world lead.
"Both Andrew and Brian are right to highlight the importance of our domestic supply chain, and with projects like Beatrice and the Aberdeen Offshore Wind Farm now underway there is a real opportunity here for Scotland to use its offshore expertise to make waves globally."
(LM/MH)
Brian McFarlane, Head of Projects - Offshore Development at SSE, said projects such as the £2.6 billion Beatrice scheme, as well as the Dogger Bank and Seagreen projects, could help boost the UK's domestic supply chain.
"There is a strong pipeline of offshore wind developments in the UK, but many of these are significantly larger than projects like (588MW, 84-turbine) Beatrice," he said.
"The vast scale of these projects can help to drive deeper cost reductions and really develop the domestic supply chain."
However, Mr McFarlane added both industry and Government needed to re-examine the Contract's for Difference (CfD) framework to "ensure it can accommodate these larger projects whilst delivering more competition in the CfD auctions".
-- Advertisement --
"The good news is that there are relatively simple tweaks that can be made to do this which will mean growth in jobs and business developing clean, secure and affordable energy for the years ahead," he said.
Andrew Jamieson, Chief Executive of the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, added: "The costs of energy from offshore wind have fallen to such a degree in recent years that it is rapidly becoming not only the nation's primary means of delivering its carbon reduction targets through the coming decades, but a huge opportunity to export energy across Europe and goods and services all around the world.
"That growth is driving opportunity in many areas, and we now have the chance to develop the companies, the workforce, the skills and expertise that will do for the UK, and for Scotland, what the oil and gas industries have done so successfully for the past half-century."
Both Mr McFarlane and Mr Jamieson were speaking ahead of an "Industry Leaders' Debate” at Scottish Renewables' Offshore Wind Conference, which will be held in Glasgow on Tuesday, 24 January.
Lindsay Roberts, Senior Policy Manager at Scottish Renewables, added: "Offshore wind is a hugely promising sector in which the UK currently enjoys a world lead.
"Both Andrew and Brian are right to highlight the importance of our domestic supply chain, and with projects like Beatrice and the Aberdeen Offshore Wind Farm now underway there is a real opportunity here for Scotland to use its offshore expertise to make waves globally."
(LM/MH)
Latest Construction News
17/01/2025
Leeds Trinity University has officially opened its newly refurbished City Campus at 1 Trevelyan Square in Leeds.
Completed by GRAHAM Interior Fit-Out, the transformation of the central Leeds site introduces state-of-the-art facilities designed to improve learning and collaborate with industry partn
17/01/2025
Trammell Crow Company (TCC) has secured planning permission for a Grade A logistics scheme in Heywood, Greater Manchester, following a successful planning appeal.
The development will feature two state-of-the-art industrial and logistics buildings. One building will house two units measuring 4,796
17/01/2025
Poole-based developer AJC Group has celebrated a record-breaking 2024, delivering 100 affordable homes, a significant increase from the 72 units completed in the previous year.
Since 2023, AJC Group has completed and handed over 172 affordable homes across five sites.
In 2024 alone, the developer
17/01/2025
Plans for one of the most ambitious parks projects in London have taken a significant step forward, with Haringey Council securing nearly two additional acres of land around The Paddock nature reserve in Tottenham Hale.
The agreement with Thames Water marks a major milestone in the transformation o
17/01/2025
Islington Council has unveiled two draft guidance documents aimed at helping residents, businesses, and developers combat climate change by making buildings more energy efficient and fostering a greener, healthier borough.
The consultation seeks feedback on the draft Climate Action Supplementary Pl
17/01/2025
The City of Wolverhampton Council has unveiled a £98 million investment plan over the next five years to develop around 500 new homes across the city.
The proposal, part of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan, received Cabinet approval this week and now moves to Full Council for final
17/01/2025
Croydon Council has announced a significant milestone in the redevelopment of the Purley Pool site, with revised proposals submitted for a new leisure centre, later living housing, and the regeneration of the surrounding area.
A planning application for the site was initially submitted in 2024, pro
17/01/2025
The City of Wolverhampton Council has announced that demolition work has commenced on the New Park Village estate, marking the start of a major £40 million redevelopment project to transform outdated council housing.
Contractor DSM Demolition has begun pulling down poor-quality bungalows on Valley
17/01/2025
Hillingdon Council has acquired 12 new homes at Carpenters Court in Uxbridge.
Leader of Hillingdon Council, Cllr Ian Edwards and Cllr Steve Tuckwell, Cabinet Member for Planning, Housing and Growth, visited the site to officially mark the handover of the properties from local developer Kearns Devel
17/01/2025
Organisers of UK Construction Week (UKCW) have announced another major coup for the show's 10th anniversary year, with the news that UKCW London will be co-locating with the 14th edition of The Stone Show & Hard Surfaces, the principal industry event for surface design.
Established 26 years ago, th
