Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government when a decision will be made as to where the Celtic Sea floating offshore wind power line will come ashore and connect to the national electricity transmission grid; who will make that decision; and what mechanism will be used to decide on that location.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
National Grid Electricity Systems Operator (ESO) is currently developing the Holistic Network Design (HND) Follow Up Exercise. Working closely with the Crown Estate, the ESO will make recommendations for the grid connections of in-scope offshore wind projects in the Celtic Sea.
The Terms of Reference for the HND Follow Up Exercise, published on GOV.UK, outline the Network Design Objectives which will inform the recommendations. The recommendations will be finalised in July 2023 and published as part of the Transitional Centralised Strategic Network Plan by the end of the year.
The recommendations will inform connection agreements, including the location of interface points between the on and offshore network. Any infrastructure proposed will be subject to the appropriate planning process.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Wales Office:
What recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on funding for green infrastructure in Wales.
Answered by David T C Davies
My Department works closely with the Welsh Government on funding for green infrastructure in Wales, including the UK Government’s ambition to bring forward 4 gigawatts of innovative floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea and support for workplace and home Electric Vehicle charging points.
Asked by: Sheryll Murray (Conservative - South East Cornwall)
Question to the Wales Office:
What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support offshore wind in Wales.
Answered by James Davies
Floating offshore wind will create thousands of high-quality jobs in Wales, drive economic growth and help us reach our net zero and energy security ambitions.
I will continue to work with colleagues across Government and The Crown Estate as they progress plans to bring forward 4 Gigawatts of projects in the Celtic Sea by 2035.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Wales Office:
What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support offshore wind in Wales.
Answered by James Davies
Floating offshore wind will create thousands of high-quality jobs in Wales, drive economic growth and help us reach our net zero and energy security ambitions.
I will continue to work with colleagues across Government and The Crown Estate as they progress plans to bring forward 4 Gigawatts of projects in the Celtic Sea by 2035.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what social value criteria the Department has set in the next auction for offshore wind projects in the Cornish Sea; and what assessment his Department has made of potential direct financial or other benefits that may be delivered locally in respect of those projects.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The parameters of the upcoming floating offshore wind seabed leasing process in the Celtic Sea are a matter for The Crown Estate, who have stated developers will be expected to provide a plan of their early investment in support of an internationally competitive supply chain.
Offshore wind is an important growth industry for the UK. The Government estimates the ambition of 50GW of offshore wind outlined in the British Energy Security Strategy, including up to 5GW of innovative floating offshore wind, could support an estimated 90,000 direct and indirect jobs by 2030
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to enable the establishment of a local supply chain for (a) Floating Offshore Wind and (b) the maximum economic benefit of developing the Celtic Sea.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government is committed to realising the economic opportunity of floating offshore wind, underlined by its ambition in the British Energy Security Strategy to deploy up to 5GW of floating wind by 2030.
The Crown Estate will launch its 4GW Celtic Sea leasing round later this year, within which developers will be expected to outline their approach to supply chains.
As part of the Contract for Difference process, Supply Chain Plans ensure developers make the investments needed to upgrade supply chain capability. The Government has introduced Supply Chain Plan requirements to all floating wind projects in Allocation Round 5.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberafan Maesteg)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an estimate of the number of (a) direct and (b) indirect jobs that could be created in floating offshore wind in (i) Wales and (ii) the UK in the next five years.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Offshore wind is an important growth industry for the UK. We estimate the 50GW ambition outlined in the British Energy Security Strategy, including up to 5GW of innovative floating offshore wind, could support an estimated 90,000 direct and indirect jobs by 2030. The UK is already a world leader in floating offshore wind, with more installed capacity than any other country and a strong and growing pipeline of floating offshore wind projects. This includes an expected 4GW upcoming in the Celtic Sea leasing round, with the potential for up to an additional 20GW in the Celtic Sea by 2045.
Asked by: Stephen Kinnock (Labour - Aberafan Maesteg)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of floating offshore wind on the economy.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Offshore wind is an important growth industry for the UK. We estimate the 50GW ambition outlined in the British Energy Security Strategy, including up to 5GW of innovative floating offshore wind, could support an estimated 90,000 direct and indirect jobs by 2030. The UK is already a world leader in floating offshore wind, with more installed capacity than any other country and a strong and growing pipeline of floating offshore wind projects. This includes an expected 4GW upcoming in the Celtic Sea leasing round, with the potential for up to an additional 20GW in the Celtic Sea by 2045.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has had recent discussions with the Welsh Government on the development of floating offshore wind projects.
Answered by Greg Hands
BEIS officials engage in regular discussions with Devolved Administrations, including the Welsh Government, on matters of mutual interest. The Celtic Sea constitutes a major development opportunity for the offshore wind sector and is set to create significant opportunities for development in Wales.
Asked by: Virginia Crosbie (Conservative - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to work with the Welsh Government to ensure that the national grid transmission network is upgraded to have the necessary capacity to transmit electricity from both small scale community generation and large scale renewable generation projects such as offshore wind.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Government works closely with Ofgem and network companies to ensure there is necessary capacity for renewable generation in Wales and across Great Britain and is engaging with the Welsh Government on this. As part of the Government’s Offshore Transmission Network Review, the National Grid Electricity System Operator will publish a Holistic Network Design by June 30th, which will accommodate 1GW of floating offshore wind capacity in the Celtic Sea.