Dalby Preferred for Whitby Offshore Renewables O&M Base

Whitby Harbour Board and Scarborough Borough Council have given their backing to making local company, Dalby Offshore Services Ltd, the preferred tenderer to develop proposals for a new offshore business to be located at Endeavour Wharf, Whitby.

Following an open market tender process held during the summer for a lease of a proportion of the wharf, Dalby Offshore Services was selected by a joint evaluation panel made up of members of the harbour board and the council.

Cllr Mike Cockerill, Chair of Whitby Harbour Board and Scarborough Borough Council Cabinet Member for Harbours said: “We are delighted to make this announcement and at having the chance to work together with Dalby Offshore Services for the future of our ports. However it is important that people know we are still at an early stage in the process; we have not yet entered into any lease or binding agreements and are still at the negotiation and development stage.

“We will be spending the coming weeks undertaking consultation with our stakeholders and the local community to try to develop proposals that are acceptable and fit with current operation and within the historic setting of the town and port.”

Dalby Offshore Services is proposing the set-up of ‘Yorkshire’s Offshore Renewable Energy Operations and Maintenance Centre’ in Whitby. If developed the centre will act as the company’s control, crew transfer and management centre for offshore operations in the northern North Sea, primarily in support of offshore wind development.

The company also wants to make Whitby the home port for its growing offshore services fleet.

Stuart McNiven, Owner and Managing Director, Dalby Offshore Services Ltd said: “This is a great opportunity for us as a company, for Whitby and for the region as a whole. The offshore wind sector is poised for massive expansion and together we can be at the forefront of that opportunity.

“Strategically, Yorkshire needs to cement its place in the service of the offshore wind sector and Whitby and Scarborough are ideally placed geographically to act as the centre for that activity.

“Personally, as a local person, born, brought up and currently living in the borough, I would like nothing more than to see that become a reality and would love to help create local, high quality, employment opportunities.”

Dalby Offshore Services is an established marine services and charter company with a fleet of vessels working throughout the globe. In recent years it has focussed on providing vessel support and crew transfer for the major contractors in the offshore wind industry. The company was also one of the lead contractors on the ground breaking Costa Concordia salvage project, off the Italian coast. It has offices throughout the UK and abroad, including a recently opened office in Scarborough and its head office is located in Beverley.

Councillor Derek Bastiman, Scarborough Borough Council Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Strategic Planning said: “We are very pleased to be working with Dalby Offshore Services on bringing forward these proposals. If they are successful, they could prove a massive boost for our economy, potentially bringing hundreds of new jobs and an entirely new industry sector to our borough. A diverse economy is critical to future stability, resilience and growth. This proposal could also open the doors to major opportunities for our local supply chain companies.

“Importantly such a proposal ties in very closely with the borough’s focus on developing education and training for a highly skilled workforce with a particular focus on construction, engineering, maritime industry and the sciences. This will provide job opportunities at the end of that process.” 

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