A US delegation of offshore wind advocates will arrive in Humber, UK, this week and visit offshore wind businesses and organisations in Hull, Grimsby and Scunthorpe on September 21 and 22.
The visit is being organised by Team Humber Marine Alliance (THMA) and builds on Memoranda of Understanding signed between THMA and two offshore wind organisations in the US and follows the Northern Powerhouse Mission to the States earlier this year, led by THMA, in partnership with the Department for International Trade, for talks with business, government and academia.
The itinerary includes: a port tour of Hull, Lord Mayor’s reception, a session at the University of Hull with industry, academic and local authority leaders and, on the south bank, visits to Dong Energy, E.ON, HCF CATCH and the Humber UTC.
Team Humber Marine Alliance’s chairman and chief executive, Mark O’Reilly , said it was an opportunity for the supply chain to make valuable business connections with a view to reciprocal agreements. “The Americans are very serious about developing offshore wind power capacity to meet clean energy targets,” he said. “They are coming here in recognition that the Humber is a growing global centre of excellence and at the heart of our drive for offshore renewables.”
Eastern states from Maine to North Carolina are represented in the visiting party along with the British Embassy.
Harriet Cross , British Consul General in Boston, said the Humber visit could be a valuable resource for states in the US setting out to develop their own wind resources. “There is also much scope for joint research between our academic institutions,” she said. “Offshore wind can generate significant economic growth and jobs and I look forward to supporting UK/US collaboration.”
The relationship will continue in October when several Humber and North-East companies will participate in the International Offshore Wind Partnering Forum held in Newport Rhode Island organised by Team Humber Marine Alliance’s US partner Business Network for Offshore Wind.
The delegation to the Humber includes: Patricia Haddad, speaker pro tempore of the Massachusetts House of Representatives; Bruce Williamson, Maine Public Utilities Commission; Michael Rodrigues, Massachusetts State Senate; Sally Jameson, Maryland House of Delegates; Tom Simchak, policy advisor, energy, British Embassy, Washington; Melissa Wooten, vice consul, prosperity and economic policy, British Consulate General, Chicago.