Thirteen organisations across England, Wales and Scotland are set to share nearly £5m in funding through the initial round of The Crown Estate’s innovative Supply Chain Accelerator (“the Accelerator”).

This funding will help kick-start projects drawing down from a £50m fund established in May to accelerate and de-risk the early-stage development of UK supply chain projects that service the offshore wind sector.

The Crown Estate’s match funding will contribute to a combined development investment of over £9m which, if the opportunities successfully conclude their respective development stages, could lead to more than £400m of capital investment.

Projects receiving funding include those enabling floating wind platforms, anchoring and mooring systems, operations and maintenance facilities, test facilities, and those supporting the skills transition.

In early 2024, The Crown Estate published the Celtic Sea Blueprint which predicted that 5,300 jobs and a £1.4bn economic boost could be generated through deploying the first floating offshore wind capacity, resulting from the current Leasing Round 5 process, in the waters off South Wales and South-West England.

The research highlighted a number of opportunities for supply chain development essential for the deployment of these floating wind farms, including: floating platform components; dynamic cables and connections; wet storage infrastructure and facilities; operations and management infrastructure and facilities; and skills transition facilities.

Successful projects were rigorously evaluated and selected based on a number of criteria, one of which was their ability to deliver on the requirements of the Celtic Sea Blueprint.

This was the initial round of funding allocated by The Crown Estate to address some of these opportunities with a further £45m earmarked for future rounds that could potentially be deployed to support further projects around the UK that meet the opportunities identified by the Industrial Growth Plan (IGP) for the offshore wind sector.

The Crown Estate’s role is to create long-term value for the country, and it focuses on using the land and seabed it manages to help catalyse net zero, restore nature, create thriving communities and drive economic growth. Helping to develop the offshore wind industry’s domestic supply chain through collaboration with industry and government partners forms a vital component of these ambitions.

The UK is already a global leader in offshore wind, and the pipeline grew by 10GW in 2023 to 93GW, with the sector producing 49TWh of electricity last year, according to The Crown Estate’s most recent UK Offshore Wind Report.

This announcement comes as the UK Government continues to set out details of Great British Energy, including a new partnership with The Crown Estate to support the accelerated delivery of clean energy infrastructure, benefiting millions of homes and businesses across the country.

Ben Brinded, Head of Investment at The Crown Estate, said: “This is a significant moment for The Crown Estate as our first funding into the UK’s offshore wind supply chain, and I would like to congratulate the 13 organisations on their success.

“As outlined by the Government’s emerging Industrial Strategy, in order for the UK to realise the economic benefits from the clean energy sector – and from offshore wind in particular – it is vital that there are mature, investable propositions which crowd in investments from both public and private capital.

“The Supply Chain Accelerator forms part of an active dialogue that we’re having with the Offshore Wind sector and with key stakeholders such as Great British Energy and others to identify and explore opportunities for TCE to make commercial and sustainable investments into the UK offshore wind supply chain.”

Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “Our clean power mission brings with it huge potential to expand our supply chains, creating skilled jobs and growth across the country.

“This investment from The Crown Estate will support 13 firms up and down Great Britain and use their manufacturing expertise to help us lead the way in developing innovative floating offshore wind technology.

“Great British Energy will build on this innovation by working with The Crown Estate to accelerate offshore wind projects, helping to protect homes and businesses from unstable fossil fuel markets.”

Juergen Maier CBE, Chair of Great British Energy, said:“Creating good manufacturing jobs is at the heart of our plans to expand the UK’s clean power production – and this investment will help to do just that.

“Together with organisations like The Crown Estate, Great British Energy will pave the way for strong domestic supply chains and unlock investment in vital clean energy infrastructure across the UK.”

For more information on the Supply Chain Accelerator, please visit: Supply Chain Accelerator Fund | The Crown Estate

List of organisations to receive funding through The Crown Estate’s Supply Chain Accelerator:

• Blue Abyss Operations Ltd.
• Celtic Sea Power Ltd.
• Gabriel Engineering Ltd.
• HR Wallingford Ltd.
• Hutchinson Engineering Ltd.
• Marine Power Systems Ltd.
• Neath Port Talbot Group of Colleges (Subject to Contract)
• Nerth Ltd.
• Pembrokeshire College (Subject to Contract)
• Plaswire Ltd.
• Plymouth & South Devon Freeport (Subject to Contract)
• Tardra Ltd.
• Tugdock Ltd.

Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals