Ocean Winds and Aker Offshore Wind have submitted a joint bid to develop floating offshore wind in Scotland.
The partnership brings together Ocean Winds’ expertise, gained locally delivering Scotland’s largest offshore windfarm – the 950MW Moray East – and Aker’s history of supply chain and project delivery in the Scottish offshore wind and oil and gas sectors.
The partners also both hold a majority stake in Principle Power, a floating foundation solutions for offshore wind, operational at the Scottish Kincardine project.
The consortium stated its commitment to delivering floating offshore wind energy at commercial scale, with a vision of large-scale Scottish job creation through supply chain investment.
Mapping and engaging with the local supply chain have already resulted in agreements with suppliers, who have demonstrated preparedness and will enable early investment priorities.
Dan Finch, managing director of Ocean Winds UK, said: “Our vision is for Scotland to become the undisputed global leader in floating offshore wind.
“We took Moray East from concept to concrete-and steel-reality, now we need a new concept to access the deep-water sites of Scotland’s net zero future.”
Sian Lloyd-Rees, managing director of Aker Offshore Wind UK, said: “Our bid provides a platform for genuine technological innovation to benefit the whole offshore wind sector and position Scotland as an engineering world leader.
“Aker have been instrumental in the design and deployment of more than half of all semisubmersible offshore installations globally and we strongly believe our experience and investment approach will deliver this future.”
Ocean Winds is a global partnership owned 50:50 by EDPR and ENGIE, which was established last summer to develop offshore wind technology.
The partnership has 4GW in construction and operation, including the 950MW Moray East (under construction) and Moray West (consented) fixed offshore wind projects in the UK.
It targets to reach 5 to 7 GW of projects in operation or construction and 5 to 10 GW under advanced development by 2025.
Aker Offshore Wind’s current portfolio consists of development projects and prospects located in Asia, North America and Europe. The company is majority-owned by Aker Horizons, an investment firm dedicated to creating value and reducing emissions from renewable energy technologies.
ScotWind Leasing is the process currently being undertaken by Crown Estate Scotland, at the direction of the Scottish Government, to grant property rights for the seabed in Scottish waters for new commercial scale offshore wind projects.
Closing today, it is the first round of seabed leasing for offshore windfarms in Scotland for a decade.
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