Wind Energy
NEE Offshore Network
- Infrastructure
- North East England has a proud heritage in the energy and offshore sectors and is ideally placed to capitalise on offshore wind. Investment in its ports and industrial infrastructure have meant that the North Sea sites announced in the Crown Estate Round 3 could easily be supplied and serviced from our engineering bases on the banks of the rivers Blyth, Tyne, Wear and Tees.
- These sites will require long term operations and maintenance (O&M) support as well as the initial build, offering opportunities to manufacturing, engineering, ports and marine operators. Narec provides the technology hook to place the region as the international hub for the offshore wind industry.
- Supply Chain Support
- The prospective supply chain for the offshore wind industry must be nurtured if we are to deliver the number of machines needed to satisfy future government renewable energy targets.
- Existing suppliers to the wind industry will need to innovate and as the focus of technology development and supply chain support shifts from onshore farms to the offshore environment, then opportunities will open up for those with the skills to enter the market.
- Narec is committed to helping to develop the supply chain for offshore wind in the UK and takes the lead on publicly funded projects designed to drive the growth of the sector. Through the Northern Wind Innovation Programme, funded through the Northern Way partnership over the next two years, we are looking to bring together industrial and technological capacity for Offshore Wind energy from across the North. For more information on NWIP, visit www.nwip.org
- Training Centre
- The industry estimates that offshore wind will permanently employ thousands of technicians in the construction, installation and long-term operations and maintenance of farms by the time Crown Estate Round 3 projects are commissioned in 2020.
- Narec provides the ideal environment for training providers to deliver and develop new courses which equip personnel for safe working offshore. Good training is vital to further establish the UK as the world leader in the wind sector and ensure maximum benefit for the country in terms of future jobs across the supply chain.
- A collaborative training partnership with Northumberland College, Narec and Mainstream Renewable Power, backed by Regional Development Agency, One North East, plans to erect the country’s first wind turbine training tower in Blyth, Northumberland as the next step in the development of a UK Centre for Wind Technician Skills.
- Test Sites
- A rapid acceleration in the production and installation of offshore turbines is required to meet global renewable energy targets. In the UK alone, installed capacity is required to increase 10-fold to over 2,000MW a year to meet 2020 targets - a very significant challenge, considering that Crown Estate Round 3 sites will be further from shore and in deeper water than current offshore installations.
- Narec is developing onshore and offshore demonstration sites to assess new offshore installation techniques and to facilitate testing, demonstration and certification of offshore turbines to help pave the way for the ramp up in activity around our shores.
- Inward Investment
- As an ‘innovation connector’ for the North East of England, Narec is funded by the Regional Development Agency (RDA), One North East, to support those companies looking to invest in energy technologies in the region.
- We provide the link to a network of business support in the North East and can tap into the local academic and industry supply chains to form bespoke consortia where required. Demonstration and joint venture possibilities can also be explored which give new technologies the best chance possible to succeed.
- Having already established the UK’s only dedicated test centre for large scale offshore wind devices, new facilities under development will establish Narec and North East England as the global hub for offshore wind technology commercialisation and deployment.
- For further information on the region and support available for businesses visit Knowledge Hub.
Sales and proposals enquiries
- Drive train test and prototype development
- Stuart Herbert, Business Development Manager
01670 543 053 - stuart.herbert@narec.co.uk
- Blade Test
- Lisa Dodds, Business Development Manager
01670 357 625 - lisa.dodds@narec.co.uk
Wind Energy
Marine Renewables
Distributed Energy
Electrical Networks