The Crown Estate has issued a call for evidence on how to achieve the government’s target of deploying 1GW of floating offshore wind generation by 2030.
The organisation, which is responsible for managing the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said the feedback it receives will help inform the “design, scale and shape” of its future leasing activity for floating wind.
It has specifically asked for views on the scale of the opportunity for floating wind in the UK and the likely pipeline of projects between now and the end of the decade, as well as how seabed rights should could made available in a way that accelerates deployment and the likely impact of developments on the environment.
Huub den Rooijen, director of energy, minerals and infrastructure at the Crown Estate, said: “Floating offshore wind is an essential technology to achieve net zero by 2050. It can open up new locations for offshore wind across the UK’s seabed, creating a new economic success story with potential for jobs up and down the country.
“With clear government policy and market appetite, the time has come to move beyond demonstration. We look forward to working closely with the market and stakeholders to enable early commercial-scale floating wind projects in a way which recognises the wide range of interests offshore and protects our marine environment.”
Lesley Griffiths, Welsh government minister for environment, energy and rural affairs, said: “I am very pleased that the Crown Estate are keen to discuss future opportunities for floating offshore energy production.
“The Crown Estate’s management of such opportunities, and how it plans leasing activity, plays a vital role in the future of offshore energy production. Discussions such as these help to give confidence to those planning large-scale projects within the sector, and we will continue to engage with the Crown Estate for a timely resolution.”
The Crown Estate said its leasing process for floating wind test and demonstration projects will be temporarily paused to allow for new applications.