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The offshore wind sector is providing millions of pounds of funding to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to identify ways of allowing wind turbines to be deployed in areas where they have previously been blocked due their impact on air defence radar.
The money will be used by the ministry to test a range of technologies and solutions, including more sophisticated radar systems that are better able to distinguish between aircraft and turbines.
The first demonstrations are scheduled to take place this year, with the preliminary results expected to be published in the first half of 2021.
The funding has been provided by members of the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC) – Orsted, RWE, Scottish Power, SSE, Vattenfall, Equinor and the Crown Estate – as part of its sector deal with the government, which includes the target to raise offshore wind capacity to 40GW by 2030.
As well as paying for trials, the money will also be used to appoint a senior Royal Air Force officer to liaise between the industry and government on aviation issues for the next three years.
Dujon Goncalves-Collins from Vattenfall Wind Power and co-chair of the joint MoD/OWIC taskforce, said: “The goal of this work is to unlock new sites for much-needed renewable energy projects by resolving radar issues comprehensively and as swiftly as possible.
“To achieve this, I’m looking forward to working closely with the new RAF co-chair of joint task force and the teams from the Ministry of Defence, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Crown Estate, along with my colleagues from the Offshore Wind Industry Council”.
Wind commander Helena Ramsden, the other co-chair and Royal Air Force air capability senior programme manager at Headquarters Air Command, said: “We are committed to keeping the skies above the UK safe from aerial threats whilst supporting achievement of the government’s green energy ambitions.
“Working across government and with the wind industry, this unique collaboration marks a major and important step on the journey to overcome the challenges that air defence and offshore wind pose to one another.”
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