Northern UK Businesses Tap Into US Offshore Wind

By Mary Green | Published February 25, 2016

The Northern Powerhouse offshore wind trade mission, led by Team Humber Marine Alliance (THMA) in partnership with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), will visit the US this week.

Northern businesses, which will land in the eastern US on 27 February, will meet US wind farm developers and supply chain companies, and attend an offshore wind networking event at the British Embassy in Washington.

Mark O’Reilly, CEO of Team Humber Marine Alliance, said: “As a business development organisation we have been keenly aware of the need to amplify the business expertise on the Humber into export markets – and getting into the US market at this development stage could, hopefully, reap very real and long lasting rewards.

“Now seems is the time to do it, as US policymakers are beginning to follow the examples in Europe that have proven successful in stimulating offshore wind technological advancement, project deployment, and job creation.”

Companies on the mission, including Atkins, Danbrit Shipping, DeepOcean, GEV Offshore, Hughes Sub Surface Engineering, and Siemens Transmission, will meet with Deepwater Wind, the US developer of the first offshore wind farm in the US, and DONG Energy, which is looking to develop a 1GW offshore wind farm in Massachusetts.

Delegates on the mission will also attend the USA Offshore Wind Leadership Conference in Boston, which will highlight opportunities in key offshore wind states including Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island, where Mr O’Reilly will give a talk on revitalising Industrial Ports and Bolstering the Manufacturing Sector.

Mark Robson, regional director for UKTI Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “The latest trade figures show that Yorkshire and the Humber businesses and the wider regional economy in which they operate continue to benefit greatly from exports to the US in terms of value added and the creation and retention of jobs.

“Our partnership with THMA on this key trade mission provides further evidence of us being stronger by working together for the greater good of the region. Made in Yorkshire and Made in Britain are formidable brands and an increasing number of businesses in Yorkshire and the Humber are well placed to take advantage of exporting to America.”

The US mission follows an inward mission to the UK at the end of 2015 by NovaVis and the Virginia Offshore Wind Coalition (VOWC).