Innovate UK has recently unveiled a comprehensive support package worth a total of £27 million. Covering three pillars including technological R&D, business incubation and industrial commercialisation, the scheme delivers all-round backing for domestic offshore wind innovators and bolsters the UK’s leading position in the global offshore wind sector.

At the heart of the package is the Offshore Wind Innovation Programme with an initial £10 million funding pot. The initiative prioritises high-potential enterprises to develop new technologies and scale up operations, with successful projects set to be announced later this year. Aligned with the Offshore Wind Industrial Growth Plan, it targets five core technology areas: advanced turbine technology, next-generation foundations and substructures, cutting-edge electrical systems and subsea cables, smart environmental services, and innovative solutions for wind turbine installation, operation and maintenance.

To speed up the commercial rollout of innovative technologies, the UK will establish a £5 million Wind Innovation Hub. The hub unites stakeholders from industry, government and innovative enterprises, and runs a dedicated Innovation Accelerator fund of up to £2 million to deliver targeted technical support for high-growth firms and shorten the timeline for technology translation.

To strengthen domestic manufacturing capacity, Innovate UK has allocated £10 million while the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero provides an additional £2 million to fund Phase 1 of the Large Structures Innovation Centre (LSIC) developed by the National Composites Centre (NCC) on the Isle of Wight. As an open-access public research facility, the LSIC enables companies to conduct full-scale industrial design, development and process validation for next-generation large wind turbine components. Vestas has signed on as the centre’s inaugural industry launch partner, and the two parties will deepen collaboration on sustainable wind blade innovation.