7 UK Companies Secure Offshore Wind Growth Partnership Funding

Offshore Wind Growth Partnership (OWGP) has awarded seven UK companies with a total of GPB 364,000 in grant funding through its first funding competition.

Cedeco, Global Energy Group, Magnomatics, and W3G Marine were successful in the call to drive cost reduction from advanced manufacturing techniques, whilst Cognitive Business, Sennen Tech, and Smart Component Technologies will work to develop advanced sensors, Internet of Things (IoT) and communications solutions for offshore wind.

The applications were assessed independently by external experts, with the highest scoring projects selected for grant funding.

GBP 364,000 was allocated to seven projects, with GBP 156,000 leveraged in match funding contributions from successful companies, securing UK offshore wind supply chain projects worth GBP 520,000 and due to begin on the 1 February 2020.

Minister of State for Business and Energy, Kwasi Kwarteng, : “The UK is a global leader in offshore wind and this funding will help our brilliant supply chain to innovate even further. Renewables are not just good for our climate, but for jobs and the economy as well – with up to 2 million new green-collar jobs by 2030. I look forward to seeing what these companies go on to achieve.”

Some of the competition winners will work with delivery partners including the National Composite Centre (NCC) and the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) to deliver projects including the application of machine learning in renewables fabrication and a robotic welding feasibility study, whilst other projects will tackle remote monitoring of critical fasteners and improving O&M efficiency through better use of data metrics.

Andrew Macdonald, OWGP Programme Director, said: “This was a very competitive process and we received a high number of quality applications, totaling almost £2million in project costs, demonstrating the huge opportunities to maximise the economic benefits of our world-leading position in offshore wind. The OWGP is committed to delivering increased productivity and competitiveness that will drive increased UK content into offshore windfarms in the rapidly growing global market, as well as in the UK.”