Strategic Renewables Unit (SRU) update   – Offshore wind and Marine Planning 

It is an exciting but challenging time to be engaged in renewables work, and particularly offshore wind, in the marine area. The Government has set ambitious targets of 40GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030 and further increases by 2050 to help meet a commitment to Net Zero and support ‘Build Back Greener’. At the same time, the marine space around England is becoming busier with a range of policy ambitions for other marine sectors of use and for the environment. There is a growing need to plan and regulate for a step change in offshore wind capacity to take account of, and deliver objectives for, other interests. Given the importance of offshore wind and its relevance to marine planning, the MMO is engaging in several related initiatives and projects.

Offshore Wind Enabling Actions Programme (OWEAP) 

In November 2020, Defra launched the Offshore Wind Enabling Actions Programme (OWEAP), designed to increase understanding of the environmental impacts of offshore wind and find strategic solutions to manage and mitigate impacts to reduce barriers to offshore wind’s expansion.  The MMO’s SRU is providing input to Defra on the various work areas covered by the programme, this has included providing input to working groups and providing comments on evidence projects.

Offshore Transmission Network Review 

The MMO is inputting into the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) led Offshore Transmission Network Review, alongside a range of government and industry bodies, as part of the working group and project board. The objective of the review is to ensure that the transmission connections for offshore wind generation are delivered in the most appropriate way, considering the contribution offshore wind is expected to make towards net-zero by 2050. This will be done with a view to finding the appropriate balance between environmental, social and economic costs.

Marine Planning Newsletter: Summer 2021 – these are the main articles – including the fuller link to the work on offshore wind and marine planning.

In this issue of the marine planning newsletter you will find:

• Adoption of Marine Plans: marks a big step forward for England’s seas
• South Marine Plan Three Year Report
• Upcoming marine plan monitoring work
• Marine Planning evidence base
• Crossing boundaries – marine plans adjacent to England
• Strategic Renewables Unit (SRU) update
• Marine Planners updates from each MMO region around the coast
• Team changes and recruitment

Click here to read these articles https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/marine-planning-newsletter-summer-2021