Offshore wind farm developers have admitted that the lion’s share of contracts for projects built in UK waters are still being awarded to overseas companies – despite the UK having more than 60% of the EU’s total offshore wind capacity. Round 2 projects London Array and Thanet have seen just 10% and 20% respectively of their £900 million construction contracts going to British firms.

Instead, developers are awarding this work to European contractors, apparently ignoring the ever-increasing pool of expertise and construction capacity that’s available right here in the UK. The north east of England in particular is gearing up to be a major resource centre for the renewable energy industry. Companies such as Tata Steel, Tag Energy Solutions, Offshore Group Newcastle, Reef Subsea Power and JDR Cable Systems, can already provide, or are planning to provide, wind turbine parts and specialist construction services.

These new ventures could provide thousands of much-needed jobs in this economically blighted area, as well as supporting vital research into making the offshore wind industry more cost-efficient. A new group, Energi Coast, has been set up to bring these companies together, to promote the north east as a leading centre of expertise around the world and attempt to win a bigger slice of the contracts pie for Round 3 wind farms.

Wilding says: ‘It’s a little disheartening to find that, 12 years after the first offshore wind farm opened in UK waters, so many of these contracts are still going out of the country. But on the flip side, there’s real potential for the north east to become a global hub for the renewable energy industry. All we need now is for the Government to get behind these new initiatives and give the industry the support it needs to realise its potential.’

Source: The Northern Echo