Seven companies from the north of Scotland and Orkney have been selected by the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult for the first Fit For Offshore Renewables (F4OR) programme in the region.
The chosen firms come from a wide range of sectors including engineering, marine renewables, offshore operations and maintenance, and subsea monitoring.
The seven selected companies are Ocean Kinetics, Orcades Marine Management Consultants, Leask Marine, Aquattera, Berkshire Engineering, Imenco UK, and Serimax UK.
The F4OR supply chain growth programme will be supported by GBP 125,000 from West of Orkney Windfarm and will take companies 12-18 months to complete.
According to ORE Catapult, the programme has been designed alongside offshore wind industry experts with a focus on giving businesses the skills and expertise to deliver success in the offshore renewables sector.
“We’ve been engaging with businesses and organisations in the north of Scotland for a number of years. Although construction of ScotWind projects will not ramp up fully for a few years, early engagement with the local supply chain is critical. Participation in this F4OR programme will equip forward-looking firms with the attributes they need to compete successfully for future contracts,” said Stuart McAuley , West of Orkney Windfarm Project Director.
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ORE Catapult said that the West of Orkney Windfarm, being developed by Corio Generation, TotalEnergies, and Renewable Infrastructure Development Group (RIDG), remains on track to start construction in 2027, with the first power scheduled for 2029.
The project has engaged in a GBP 105 million investment initiative during the development phase to develop the supply chain that is planned to be enhanced to GBP 140 million by match funding from third parties, said ORE Catapult.
To date, five F4OR regional programmes have been delivered in the northeast of Scotland, northeast of England, East Anglia, and Suffolk, alongside national programmes run across Scotland and UK-wide.
According to ORE Catapult, over 110 companies have been supported altogether, with participants experiencing an average 28 per cent increase in turnover and many securing a wide range of new contracts.