Britain To Invest £60 Million In Innovative Offshore Floating Wind Projects
Image via the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
The British government announced on Tuesday that it would be directing more than £31 million (US$41.7 million) of funding towards floating offshore wind projects in a bid to reduce the country’s usage of natural gas.
Floating turbines, which can hold their position in deeper waters than the conventional turbine, will be placed in deep-sea areas. This targets places where winds are strongest around the UK’s coastline.
Additionally, the government funding will be matched by more than £30 million (US$ ) from industry. According to the government, this will allow the drive of “green energy investment” and “leveling up parts of the country including in Aberdeen, Swansea and Yorkshire.”
11 successful projects will be receiving up to £10 million from the government fund. This development will ensure that the costs associated with building and locating floating turbines will “come down faster” and grow the UK’s supply chain.
Some of these projects involve one that explores a new anchoring system allowing the security of floating turbine cables, and another is a mooring system that will make the floating turbines’ initial installation much easier.
In turn, these new technologies will position offshore wind energy as a less intimidating new field for consumers and businesses to replace natural gas with.
“These innovative projects will help us expand renewable energy further and faster across the UK and help to reduce our exposure to volatile global gas prices,” explains Greg Hands, the UK’s Energy Minister, in a press release.
The Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan states the aim of delivering 1GW of energy via floating offshore wind by 2030. This is definitely a promising start.
Floating offshore wind turbines could soon be powering UK homes.
— Dept for BEIS (@beisgovuk) January 25, 2022
They can be placed in deeper waters & where winds are stronger 🌬
It's a boost for clean energy with over £60m public & private investment - and another step towards #NetZero emissions.
👉https://t.co/53BAlp26jE pic.twitter.com/ltijCJ8g4O
[via Electrek and Gov.uk, image via the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy]
