The aim of this call is to overcome technical challenges and drive down cost of offshore wind.

• Ambition is to embed economic benefits in north of Scotland.
• Programme delivered by EMEC and sponsored by West of Orkney Windfarm.

A £1 million research and innovation (R&I) programme is searching for novel solutions to help deliver offshore wind faster, cheaper and at lower risk.

The first in a series of innovation calls has opened for applications, with up to £300,000 available to projects.

The Offshore Wind R&I Programme, delivered by the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), based in Orkney, and sponsored by the West of Orkney Windfarm, is exploring ways to overcome specific technical challenges in offshore wind and to embed the economic benefits in the north of Scotland.

A series of innovation calls will address different challenge areas facing the West of Orkney Windfarm, spanning metocean, installation, logistics, and operations and maintenance (O&M).

Last year, the West of Orkney Windfarm secured the rights to an area of seabed from Crown Estate Scotland to develop an offshore wind farm 30 km west of the Orkney Mainland and 25 km north of the Sutherland coast. Once complete, the multi-billion pound project will deliver enough electricity to power more than two million homes, alongside significant social and economic benefits to the north of Scotland.

The R&I Programme will sponsor innovative projects to help the supply chain bring new solutions to market, build operational capacity and scale up activities. Successful applicants may also get support with developing a robust project proposal, accessing alternative grant funding and access to EMEC’s world-leading test and demonstration sites.

The first innovation call is now open and is looking for solutions that address at least one of the following challenges:

• Understanding metocean conditions at and en route to the West of Orkney Windfarm site, to inform decision making on installation and O&M activities.
• Design for short weather window installations to maximise opportunities for efficient installation.

The innovation call will close at 1pm, Monday 12 February 2024.

Prospective applicants can register for the webinar here:
https://linkscan.io/scan/ux/aHR0cHM6Ly91czAyd2ViLnpvb20udXMvd2ViaW5hci9yZWdpc3Rlci82NjE3MDE5ODc4MTMzL1dOX0ZmUDJGRlplUmVXNkd6endTSFpRSlE=/DEF3DFC953229488B2B7403979329B9905AF5D25411B5B025FC283F475280F81?c=1&i=1&docs=1

Full call details can be found on the new Offshore Wind R&I Programme website: https://linkscan.io/scan/ux/d3d3Lm9mZnNob3JlaW5ub3ZhdGlvbi5zY290/B38DC5CDF6C68E49BF0F9E4C6358A7F808CDA31F1555F47B76F7ECEBFCC794E3?c=1&i=1&docs=1