Carbon Trust and the Energy Technologies Institute join forces on Offshore Wind
17 December 2007
17th December 2007
The Carbon Trust and the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) today joined forces to announce plans for an ambitious £40m initiative to cut the costs of offshore wind power and accelerate its deployment around the UK. The announcement comes days after the Government proposed to open up the sea to around 33GW of offshore wind power capacity – equivalent to the UK's entire domestic electricity needs – by 2020.
The Carbon Trust and ETI see offshore wind as a strategic priority for the UK, both to reduce carbon emissions and create economic prosperity1, and the combined expertise and resources of these two organisations is expected to have a significant impact in accelerating progress in the sector. The initiative will be broad in scope but will ensure a strong focus on cost reduction which, given the current high costs of offshore wind energy2, is essential to provide the necessary confidence for large-scale investments and to ensure the Government's carbon reduction and renewables targets are met.
The Carbon Trust and ETI are together allocating £40m to the initiative and seeking further private sector sponsorship, and today sees the start of an 'expressions of interest' process inviting industry and other organisations to register their interest in becoming involved. The overall initiative will engage organisations from across the spectrum of offshore wind technology and project development, plus other organisations with relevant expertise (for example from the offshore oil/gas sector), and is expected to lead to a small number of major projects involving research, development and demonstration activities.
Energy Secretary, John Hutton said: "As part of the UK's shift to a low carbon economy, we must harness the full potential of our island nation. Our support through the Renewables Obligation, and our opening up of the seas for development will lead the way for a major expansion in offshore wind energy. In joining forces, the ETI and Carbon Trust will help create the conditions needed to drive this expansion forward. I wish this important initiative every success."
Tom Delay, Chief Executive of the Carbon Trust said: "Offshore wind represents one of our best shots for delivering vast amounts of carbon free power over the coming years and also represents a huge economic opportunity for UK plc. However, to make this a reality, and the UK a world leader, we must focus on the number one issue of reducing the current costs of the technology. This initiative aims to do just that. By working closely with manufacturers, developers and companies throughout the supply chain we aim to catalyse innovation and push down costs."
David Clarke, Chief Executive of the Energy Technologies Institute, said: "We are delighted to be working with the Carbon Trust on our very first technology programme. Collaboration is at the core of the ETI's ethos, both through our public/private partnership structure, but also through our intention to work with organisations which share a common vision of a low carbon energy landscape. By pooling resources and expertise for offshore wind, the Carbon Trust and ETI are providing a very attractive funding opportunity, which in turn will lead to greater progress in developing and demonstrating new and improved technologies. "
Maria McCaffery, Chief Executive of the British Wind Energy Association, said: "This initiative – the largest ever in Offshore Wind research and development – is exactly what the industry needs to help accelerate growth. We are on the cusp of a huge expansion in UK waters but this will only be realised if support such as this pushes thinking forward by advancing technologies and achieving cost reductions. A successful clean energy industry, built upon the offshore strengths this country already has in abundance, is the prize here, making this announcement particularly welcome in its spirit of collaboration between the Government, industry and other key stakeholders. This is a significant step in the right direction and the wind industry looks forward to engaging in this exciting programme as it develops."
1. The market could be worth at least £2 billion a year to the UK's economy by 2020 according to a recent Carbon Trust study “Policy Frameworks for Renewables”, July 2006
2. Currently the capital costs of offshore wind, at around £2.0m/MW, are more than twice those for onshore wind.
The Carbon Trust and the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) today joined forces to announce plans for an ambitious £40m initiative to cut the costs of offshore wind power and accelerate its deployment around the UK. The announcement comes days after the Government proposed to open up the sea to around 33GW of offshore wind power capacity – equivalent to the UK's entire domestic electricity needs – by 2020.
The Carbon Trust and ETI see offshore wind as a strategic priority for the UK, both to reduce carbon emissions and create economic prosperity1, and the combined expertise and resources of these two organisations is expected to have a significant impact in accelerating progress in the sector. The initiative will be broad in scope but will ensure a strong focus on cost reduction which, given the current high costs of offshore wind energy2, is essential to provide the necessary confidence for large-scale investments and to ensure the Government's carbon reduction and renewables targets are met.
The Carbon Trust and ETI are together allocating £40m to the initiative and seeking further private sector sponsorship, and today sees the start of an 'expressions of interest' process inviting industry and other organisations to register their interest in becoming involved. The overall initiative will engage organisations from across the spectrum of offshore wind technology and project development, plus other organisations with relevant expertise (for example from the offshore oil/gas sector), and is expected to lead to a small number of major projects involving research, development and demonstration activities.
Energy Secretary, John Hutton said: "As part of the UK's shift to a low carbon economy, we must harness the full potential of our island nation. Our support through the Renewables Obligation, and our opening up of the seas for development will lead the way for a major expansion in offshore wind energy. In joining forces, the ETI and Carbon Trust will help create the conditions needed to drive this expansion forward. I wish this important initiative every success."
Tom Delay, Chief Executive of the Carbon Trust said: "Offshore wind represents one of our best shots for delivering vast amounts of carbon free power over the coming years and also represents a huge economic opportunity for UK plc. However, to make this a reality, and the UK a world leader, we must focus on the number one issue of reducing the current costs of the technology. This initiative aims to do just that. By working closely with manufacturers, developers and companies throughout the supply chain we aim to catalyse innovation and push down costs."
David Clarke, Chief Executive of the Energy Technologies Institute, said: "We are delighted to be working with the Carbon Trust on our very first technology programme. Collaboration is at the core of the ETI's ethos, both through our public/private partnership structure, but also through our intention to work with organisations which share a common vision of a low carbon energy landscape. By pooling resources and expertise for offshore wind, the Carbon Trust and ETI are providing a very attractive funding opportunity, which in turn will lead to greater progress in developing and demonstrating new and improved technologies. "
Maria McCaffery, Chief Executive of the British Wind Energy Association, said: "This initiative – the largest ever in Offshore Wind research and development – is exactly what the industry needs to help accelerate growth. We are on the cusp of a huge expansion in UK waters but this will only be realised if support such as this pushes thinking forward by advancing technologies and achieving cost reductions. A successful clean energy industry, built upon the offshore strengths this country already has in abundance, is the prize here, making this announcement particularly welcome in its spirit of collaboration between the Government, industry and other key stakeholders. This is a significant step in the right direction and the wind industry looks forward to engaging in this exciting programme as it develops."
1. The market could be worth at least £2 billion a year to the UK's economy by 2020 according to a recent Carbon Trust study “Policy Frameworks for Renewables”, July 2006
2. Currently the capital costs of offshore wind, at around £2.0m/MW, are more than twice those for onshore wind.