InfraStrata’s chief executive says he expects the company to be a “major player” in Scotland’s emerging offshore floating wind sector.
John Wood described InfraStrata’s recent £26 million offshore wind contract win as a “catalyst” that will allow the firm, which owns industrial yards in Fife and the Isle of Lewis, to compete for future work in the renewables space.
Floating wind, which allows developers to situate turbines in deeper, windier waters, is likely to form a significant part of the acreage allocated through the ongoing ScotWind offshore leasing round.
Despite the technology being in its early stages, Scotland, and the north-east specifically, is already home to two pioneering floating developments.
Equinor’s Hywind Scotland off the coast of Peterhead became operational in 2017, while the Kincardine Offshore Floating Wind Farm, which will be the “world’s largest”, is currently being installed near Aberdeen.
And InfraStrata is looking to capitalise on the opportunities presented by the technology, with the UK Government targeting 1 gigawatt of floating wind by 2030.
Mr Wood said: “InfraStrata’s latest contract win is the catalyst to put a credible offer on the table in the UK for this type of work.
“We’re going to look towards floating wind as we move forward – we see ourselves being a major player in that space.
“It’s also about looking at the other markets and sectors that we’ve got to make sure that, if there is a period when there’s no renewable work going on, we’re busy in defence, ferries and oil and gas.
“That means we can keep a sustainable workforce and we don’t have to reemploy every time a contract comes along.”
Almost 300 jobs are to be created at the London-listed company’s yard in Methil as a result of it securing work to fabricate and load-out eight wind turbine generator jacket foundations for the Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) offshore wind farm.
InfraStrata, through its Harland & Wolff subsidiary, bought the Fife site, alongside its counterpart in Arnish, earlier this year in a deal worth up to £850,000.
The yards were previously owned by Burntisland Fabrications (BiFab), which collapsed at the end of 2020 after the Scottish Government removed financial support for the firm.
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