The Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult and the Net Zero Technology Centre (NZTC) announced the start of a new programme under the Energy Transition Alliance. The Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) Innovation Network will focus on maximising the impact of commercial, pivot scale and innovative floating wind projects through the leasing process.
Crown Estate Scotland manages the INTOG leasing process, which is designed to use floating offshore wind to reduce oil and gas emissions directly.
Andy Macdonald, director of development and operations for ORE Catapult said: “This new network creates a unique forum to help support the industry leading innovations that these projects are designed to deliver.”
“Coming ahead of the build out of the large scale ScotWind sites, these projects offer a fantastic opportunity for industry to learn more about how to overcome the challenges, and maximise the potential, of new floating wind technology.”
The Innovation Network will focus specifically on the innovation element of the INTOG leasing round, and aim to facilitate research, development and engagement scopes for the five projects allocated exclusivity agreements.
Collaborative relationships between projects will be a priority of the work, which will also provide a single point of contact for all five innovation projects to facilitate engagement and potential collaborations with the wider floating offshore wind industry.
It will also prioritise sharing lessons to inform future projects, adopting a common approach on some topics. Finally, the Innovation Network will explore opportunities to test and demonstrate technologies to increase technology readiness and de-risk technologies.
Graeme Rogerson, head of net zero technology, NZTC, added: “Maximising the impact and value to industry of these innovation projects is crucial in realising the future ambitions for UK floating wind and the value to our supply chain and port infrastructure. We are delighted to play such a pivotal role in driving this collaboration and shaping the future of offshore wind.”
Decarbonising offshore energy
The Energy Transition Alliance is a collaboration between ORE Catapult and the NZTC that aims to support decarbonisation of the offshore energy sector by working together on pathways to support the transition from oil and gas to renewables in the North Sea.
Industry network Norwegian Offshore Wind views the UK as the most attractive offshore wind market in Europe. Indeed, at the beginning of this month, the Crown Estate published a report that found the UK’s offshore wind market represents more than 40% of European offshore wind capacity, having grown to 93GW in 2023.
