Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband visits ORE Catapult’s Floating Wind Innovation Centre alongside Minister for Energy Michael Shanks and Chair of Great British Energy Jürgen Maier. Picture by Lauren Hurley / DESNZ

The Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult has welcomed the announcement by Ed Miliband of a new partnership between the UK and Scottish Governments for Great British Energy to work with Scottish public bodies to support clean energy supply chains and infrastructure, as well as speeding up delivery of a ‘skills passport’ to support the transition of oil and gas workers into the offshore wind sector.

The announcement came during a tour of ORE Catapult’s Floating Wind Innovation Centre (FLOWIC) in Aberdeen, the world’s first dedicated facility for floating offshore wind innovation. Accompanied by Energy Minister Michael Shanks and Great British Energy Chair Juergen Maier, the Secretary of State was able to view the state-of-the-art testing facilities and interact with virtual reality training simulators.

Ronnie Bonnar, Chair at ORE Catapult, said:
“Developing supply chains is vitally important to the successful deployment of offshore renewables, both in Scotland and across the UK. FLOWIC is the only dedicated floating offshore wind innovation centre in the world and is vital to keeping the UK at the forefront of this burgeoning sector. ORE Catapult looks forward to working with Great British Energy to drive the UK innovation ecosystem, bolster supply chain capability and cement the UK’s status as a Clean Energy Superpower.”

KeyFacts Energy Industry Directory: ORE Catapult