24th February 2022
The Offshore Wind Growth Partnership (OWGP) announces the winners of its first Innovation Grant Funding Competition.
Eleven UK companies are celebrating after securing a share of the £3m Innovation Grant funding pot from the Offshore Wind Growth Partnership (OWGP). Launched in September 2021, the Innovation Grant competition is the first of its kind – offering grants of up to £100,000 to UK supply chain companies for projects that could accelerate the offshore wind site development and consenting process.
The 11 companies, from across the UK, will deliver projects that address a variety of challenges associated with offshore wind site development and consenting, including optimising site selection, environmental monitoring and compensation methods, subsea surveys, and data analysis techniques.
Sophie Banham, Equinor’s Digitalisation Manager at Dogger Bank Wind Farms and OWGP Industry Lead said “It’s fantastic to see these projects and companies being supported by the Offshore Wind Growth Partnership. This Innovation Grant Funding, targeting the earliest phase of offshore wind project development, has the potential to unlock real value for developers through providing state-of-the-art solutions for a range of issues. I look forward to seeing the outcomes of this work being deployed in the UK and beyond to support the UKs position as a leader in offshore wind”
The remaining Innovation Grant pot funding will be allocated at the next OWGP funding competition, which is expected to launch in May 2022. The competition scope and key dates will be announced soon.
The OWGP’s grant funding portfolio now consists of forty-seven projects, each delivering new products, services and technologies to the UK offshore wind sector and unlocking domestic supply chain growth and export opportunities. Combined with the OWGP’s suite of business transformation programmes, over 100 companies are currently receiving targeted support to help overcome barriers to growth in the sector.
The OWGP plays a key role in delivering the Offshore Wind Sector Deal and is funded by members of the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC), with a budget of £100m over ten years. The programme supports the growth of UK businesses looking to capitalise on the huge opportunities offered by the global offshore wind sector.
Over 1100 companies have now registered an interest on the OWGP website, where further information on the Grant Funding and Business Transformation programmes can be found. For more information and to register your business, visit the OWGP website: https://owgp.org.uk/ or get in touch with the team at info@owgp.org.uk
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Notes to Editors
Full list of Innovation Grant competition winners and projects descriptions are:
