Crown Estate Scotland announced that Thistle Wind Partners (TWP), a consortium of DEME Concessions (Wind) NV (42,5%), Qair Marine SAS (42,5%), and Aspiravi International NV (15%), had been awarded 2GW worth of option areas in Scotland’s highly competitive ScotWind seabed leasing process, according to DEME's release.
The consortium’s successful projects are:
Cluaran Deas Ear: a 1 GW fixed foundation project in the 187 km2 E3 plan option area;
Cluaran Ear-Thuath: a 1 GW floating foundation project in the 201 km2 NE2 plan option area which is envisaged to be developed in two phases.
To ensure a robust project delivery, TWP conducted an extensive assessment of the environmental and technical aspects of the ScotWind project sites. Focused technology optioneering, evaluation of grid capacity development, and a comprehensive risk mitigation plan were undertaken to secure fast tracked and de-risked developments at a pace that shall accelerate even more now that the projects have been selected.
Thistle Wind Partners will bring together its partners’ solid and complementary offshore wind development backgrounds characterised by fast-track delivery, stakeholder involvement, supply chain engagement, innovation in promising technologies, cost control and containment.
For Thistle Wind Partners local content is a key focus. The consortium intends to work hand in hand with the Scottish government as well as with local communities and businesses to help develop related supply chain and expertise.
In the coming months, TWP will be actively engaging with government authorities, fellow developers, communities, and businesses, to fully understand local capabilities and define ways to work together, with a particular focus on breaking down barriers to new entrants to the job market, creating new skilled and energy transition jobs, and ensuring through investment that Scottish ports are ready and in the best position to seize an offshore wind pipeline of opportunities.
About DEME Group
DEME is a world leader in the highly specialised fields of dredging, solutions for the offshore energy market, environmental and infra marine works. The company can build on more than 140 years of know-how and experience is a front runner in innovation and new technologies.