Subsea UK’s new TV debate style event makes its debut next week, with industry leaders and government panellists exploring how the subsea sector can support the energy transition and the blue economy.  

Streamed from the Subsea Live TV studio in Aberdeen, from 25-27 May, ‘Subsea Live’ will include a professional broadcast quality debate to engage the audience in discussing near-term and longer-term opportunities for the industry. 

Energy minister, Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP, will give the opening address, affirming the UK Government’s support for and recognition of the size, scale and potential of the underwater industry.  

Sue Barr is chair of the UK Marine Energy Council and will be participating in the Energy Transition/Blue Economy panel session on Tuesday May 25, from 10:30 – 12:00.  

She says the UK has everything at hand to seize the opportunities presented by the energy transition and the blue economy.  

“We have significant wave and tidal resources around the UK coastline, we've got the technology developers, we know how to put technology and equipment in the water, and we know how to service it and operate it. We also know how to build it, so we have all the ingredients here to maintain our global lead in marine energy. We just need to work together in a joined-up manner. 

“The future of wave and tidal in the UK is a reality, we need to make it commercial. We've got over 44 gigawatt hours onto the grid from wave and tidal technology now, so it's no longer an emerging opportunity, it does generate, and I do believe we can deliver it.”  

Gordon McIntosh is a director at Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG) and will be appearing on the Cross Sector panel session on Wednesday May 26, from 10:30 - 12:00. 

He believes the UK subsea supply chain is on the cusp of a huge opportunity.  

“I see Aberdeen as the shop window, in many ways, for the UK supply chain. There’s no reason why existing skilled people in the oil and gas industry can't benefit from this and it's a great opportunity for youngsters coming through to get into the subsea industry, which is going to play a leading role in the transition. I'm optimistic about what the UK’s subsea supply chain can do globally.” 

Mark Richardson is vice president of projects at Neptune Energy and will be speaking as part of the Share Fair segment on Wednesday May 26, from 14:00 – 15:30.  

Mark will be outlining a series of new opportunities for the subsea supply chain, including the Dugong field development, one of the largest discoveries on the Norwegian Continental Shelf last year, the Pegasus tie-back in the UKCS, the Petrel field development in Australia, and the Neptune new energy developments in the Netherlands. 

“I think there is a wealth of opportunity in the new energy space. But there's still an enormous amount of work to be undertaken in traditional hydrocarbon subsea oil and gas development. The requirement for oil and gas is going to continue for the foreseeable future and I think we're going to be resource constrained, so collaborating with the supply chain and optimising these resources is the best way to proceed, both in relation to our new energy and oil and gas developments.”  

Kevin Liu is head of energy trade (Asia Pacific) at Scottish Development International and will be contributing to the Global Opportunities session on Thursday May 27, from 09:30 - 11:30.  

He says the harsh North-Sea environment translates well to some of the challenging marine settings in Asia, but suppliers looking to capitalise in the emerging multi-billion-pound floating offshore wind market need to be prepared to work together to secure opportunities.  

“If you look at floating offshore wind and the different component parts, Scotland doesn't have it all. But we do have people who are designing good innovative, cost effective sub structures, and developing dynamic cabling and mooring and anchoring solutions.  

“Presenting all of these capabilities as a strategic consortium allows us to promote Scotland with more credibility to potential developers and tier one contractors on a strategic basis. That's one approach we're trying to adopt in Japan, China, and Taiwan.” 

Designed to provide a unique platform, that offers more than just a webinar, Subsea Live will assess growth opportunities for the subsea supply chain with industry experts featuring throughout the three-day event which will include two live panel sessions hosted by Kirstin Gove with representatives from UK Marine Energy Council, Baker Hughes, Ørsted, Serica Energy, Neptune Energy, Equinor, SSE Renewables and Scottish Development International.  

Registration is free and can be secured at www.subseauk.com.