New fund to power further investment in offshore wind sector

Building on recent success in attracting world-leading turbine manufacturers to locate R&D bases in Scotland, the £35 million POWERS fund aims to leverage up to a further £80 million of private investment and bring the production of full-scale prototypes to Scottish sites.

POWERS will be managed and administered by Scottish Enterprise, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

The fund comes at a defining moment in the offshore wind industry’s evolution with global developers and investors currently considering investment locations across Europe to establish manufacturing operations and construction expected to commence by 2014.

With more than 7,000 wind turbines planned for UK waters and over £100bn to be invested in the next decade, securing turbine manufacturing is seen as a critical step in achieving Scotland’s low carbon economic growth ambitions.

Mr Salmond was addressing delegates at the second Scottish Low Carbon Investment Conference in Edinburgh.

He said:

“Last year’s conference gave a clear focus on what was needed to provide optimum investment conditions for low carbon energy – from ensuring we brought offshore oil & gas expertise together with the renewables industry, to providing the right support to bring research and development to Scotland. We listened, we acted and in 12 months we have achieved much. But there is more to do. The last year has demonstrated the appetite of the Scottish Government and private sector to work together to invest in this exciting new industry.

“As developers and investors look across this global market for certainty and for leadership from government, they can look to Scotland to provide those things. We are determined to remain among the most attractive locations for manufacturing, including the prototype testing that follows the R&D phase. That is why I am announcing a new £35 million fund to support production of full-scale prototypes of the next-generation offshore wind turbines that will power the renewables revolution, deliver our 2020 vision and reindustrialise Scotland.”

“Lena Wilson, chief executive of Scottish Enterprise said: “Offshore wind is a rapidly expanding, long term, global market, with significant low carbon economic growth opportunities for Scotland. We have a real opportunity to capture a share of the critical turbine manufacturing market and this fund underlines our commitment to developing our business environment to ensure Scotland is at the forefront of a globally competitive offshore wind sector and helps achieve Scotland’s low carbon economic growth ambitions."

Alex Paterson, Chief Executive of Highlands and Islands Enterprise, commented: "We welcome the announcement of the POWERS development fund as an additional support which will help us move forward and build on the many assets we already possess across the Highlands and Islands. Scotland is a great place for all types of renewable energy, with an established and growing supply chain, good infrastructure bases and an abundance of natural resources. The POWERS fund is a further indicator of Scotland's determination to be a global player in the growing offshore wind market."

The fund is the latest addition to a wide ranging package of support to encourage development of the sector in Scotland. Already on offer to prospective investors, developers and companies active or looking to enter the sector include:

The National Renewables Infrastructure fund
Regional Selective Assistance
Research and Development/commercialisation funding
International Renewable Energy Zone,
Business infrastructure development including Energetica and Fife Energy Park
Energy Laboratory
Offshore Wind Expert Support Programme
Scottish Supply Chain Database
Low Carbon Skills Fund