Eight North East companies have been selected to join an accelerator programme that aims to boost offshore renewable energy innovation in the region.
The North East Offshore Wind Innovation and Demonstration (NEOWIND) programme will be delivered by the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult with funding from the North East mayoral authority plus support from industry leaders, Equinor and Morven Offshore Wind Farm. The programme has £4.5m in funding, with the first eight companies sharing £1.87m.
Building on TIGGOR success
The programme is aiming to build on the success of the previous TIGGOR programme (Technology Innovation and Green Growth for Offshore Renewables), which had supported offshore wind innovation in North East England since 2020. Partners in the new programme include the Ports of Blyth, Tyne and Sunderland; Newcastle, Durham and Sunderland universities; Business Northumberland and Business North Tyneside, Invest South Tyneside, Business Gateshead and Business Durham. The programme is also supported by Energi Coast Innovation Group.
The first wave of funding will go to Newcastle companies TLR9, Kinewell, SeaThor, H2CHO, Spirit Advisory and Sensing 360, plus Succorfish in North Tyneside and Acuity Robotics in Northumberland.
Supporting innovation and local growth
Claire Canning, head of supply chain excellence at ORE Catapult, said: “This is fantastic for the North East of England and a great opportunity for the offshore wind industry to capitalise on.
“These eight ambitious companies demonstrate the innovation we need to make clean power a reality, and we look forward to supporting them over the next few years within the NEOWIND programme as they develop their technologies - to support the industry, boost the local economy and support the wider supply chain.”
North East mayor Kim McGuinness said: “The North East is the home of the green energy revolution with many opportunities for our people and our businesses to thrive. We’re putting forward millions to deliver NEOWIND – the only regional offshore wind innovation programme in the UK, because we want our businesses to grow and create new high-quality jobs and apprenticeships as we work to double the number of green energy jobs by 2035.
“It’s a really exciting time for the offshore wind sector as we re-industrialise the region and deliver our ambitions for the sector.”
Robotic inspection development
Acuity Robotics has received funding to develop an advanced robotic inspection system that follows planned inspection routes, identifies structural features and records the location of inspection measurements, for use on wind turbine towers and offshore support structures.
Jason Liu, the company’s chief technology officer at Acuity Robotics, said: “Offshore wind is a rapidly growing industry, but inspecting and maintaining these large structures remains challenging, costly and often requires people to work in hazardous environments. This funding gives us the opportunity to build on our existing robotic technology and develop smarter, more autonomous systems that can make inspections safer, more efficient and more reliable. We’re particularly excited to be developing and testing this technology in Blyth, contributing to the North East’s growing offshore wind industry and helping bring innovative British robotics closer to commercial deployment.”
