Glasgow to host offshore wind industry event

In partnership with The Crown Estate, owner of the UK seabed, Scottish Enterprise will host the event at the Radisson SAS Hotel from 9.30am where speakers will demonstrate the huge scale of offshore wind opportunities in the UK, and future business opportunities will be facilitated through one-to-one meetings and networking in the exhibition area.  The event is aimed at companies with the capability to supply and service the offshore wind industry, particularly those who may not yet have considered the sector. 

John Swinney MSP will deliver the keynote address by a video presentation followed by presentations from Dermot Grimson and Adrian Fox of The Crown Estate and Adrian Gillespie of Scottish Enterprise. 

In addition, offshore wind development partners will give presentations including Robert East of SeaGreen Wind Energy Ltd, Ralph Thornton of ScottishPower Renewables and John Robertson from Burntisland Fabrications. 

Adrian Gillespie, Director, Energy and Low Carbon Technologies at Scottish Enterprise said, ”Scotland is leading the way in setting targets for carbon reduction.  We also have world-leading capabilities within our existing energy supply chains.  Maximising the involvement of Scottish companies in offshore wind makes sense all round. It's good for the economy and it's good for offshore wind farm developers to have strong local partnerships in place.  These events are a chance for businesses in Scotland to see the enormous growth opportunities that offshore wind deployment presents and what part their businesses may play in this.  They will also have the chance to meet key decision makers in the Offshore Wind sector."

Rob Hastings, Head of the Marine Estate at The Crown Estate continued “We are delighted to be working with Scottish Enterprise and Government in jointly hosting the offshore wind energy supply chain event in Glasgow.

“The industry is proposing that 25% of the UK's electricity demand will be met from offshore wind by 2020 and this represents a massive long term investment opportunity for Scotland.

“It has the potential to generate thousands of jobs in the UK and our event in Glasgow is the ideal opportunity for the business community to find out how they can benefit from the growth in the offshore wind sector.”

The exhibition area will include representation from both the speaker organisations and the following companies:

• Round 3 Zone 1 - Moray Firth - Moray Offshore Renewables Ltd owned by EDP Renovaveis and SeaEnergy Renewables
• Round 3 Zone 3 - Dogger Bank -  Forewind Consortium equally owned by SSE Renewables, RWE Npower Renewables, Statoil and Statkraft
• SSE Renewables
• E.ON
• Climate & Renewables
• Mainstream Renewable Power
• DONG Energy
• Fred Olsen Renewables
• Subocean Group
• Department of Energy & Climate Change
• Industrial and Power Association
• Scottish Engineering
• Subsea UK
• Marine Scotland
• Scottish Renewables
• National Grid Offshore
• SMAS (Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service)
• Carbon Trust

One-to-one sessions will take place during the event to offer supply chain companies the opportunity to meet directly with development partners to discuss business opportunities. 

This event is the third of a series of 12 events taking place across the UK.   Scottish Enterprise also hosted the first event in Aberdeen on 28 January, while Highlands & Islands Enterprise hosted one in Inverness on 2 February.  For further information visit http://www.thecrownestate.co.uk/