Interest shown in oil and gas offshore wind leasing process
A TOTAL of 19 applications have been made for an offshore wind leasing process targeted at decarbonising the oil and gas industry.
The submissions have been made to Crown Estate Scotland’s Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) offshore wind leasing process.
Sites designated for this potentially include to the west of Shetland, as well as to the north and east – although the latter two areas are a greater distance away from the isles compared to the west.
Crown Estate Scotland said the level of interest from industry demonstrates “significant support for this exciting new opportunity”.
It said INTOG will help to decarbonise the North Sea oil and gas sector by supporting the building of wind farm projects connected to oil and gas infrastructure (TOG) providing electricity and will reduce the carbon emissions associated with oil and gas production.
It will also allow for the development of small-scale (IN) innovative offshore wind projects of 100MW or less.
Of the 19 applications, ten are for the ‘innovation’ part, while nine have been submitted for the TOG element.
These applications have been sited in those locations set out in the Scottish Government’s Initial Planning Framework.
Crown Estate Scotland will now assess the applications. The offer of exclusivity agreements for both IN and TOG projects is anticipated to be announced by the end of April 2023.
It comes after three oil and gas companies recently announced they would explore electrification opportunities for their West of Shetland assets, which may include power from land or offshore wind.
The INTOG process is separate to Crown Estate Scotland’s ScotWind leasing round for general offshore wind sites, which includes plans for three developments to the east of Shetland.
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