By Jess Breedon – Stakeholder lead
Returning to the Marine Energy Wales event this year was a great opportunity to connect with the renewable energy sector in the region. The conference was attended by industry leaders, innovators and policymakers, all working towards unlocking the full potential of marine energy in the Celtic Sea and beyond.
It was great to catch up with plenty of familiar faces andmeet many new ones too. The growth of the sector was clear to see, with increasing interest in renewable energy, and in developing projects, bringing lots of new organisations and people to the conference. The blend of existing relationships and new perspectives reflected the momentum building across the industry.
Taking part in the panel session “Made in Wales – Building our Marine Energy Future in Offshore Wind”, alongside colleagues developing offshore windfarms in both the Celtic and Irish Sea shone a spotlight on the scale of development and opportunities to come for the sector. We shared how the offshore wind project pipeline in the region can translate into real growth for businesses and communities.
One of the strongest themes throughout both the panel session and the wider conference was work that companies in the supply chain are already doing to ensure they are ready to support developments like the White Cross project. We know from our engagement work what great progress the supply chain in the South West has made, but it was great to hear the Welsh perspective too. The presentations shared key project milestones and highlighted where suppliers can engage in a meaningful way. Developers are keen to work with local companies to get involved across manufacturing, engineering, services and long-term operations and maintenance.
More broadly, there was a real sense of how far the sector has come. Across tidal, wave and offshore wind, early-stage development has made significant progress. Projects are moving forward, innovation is picking up pace, and the Celtic Sea is firmly establishing itself as an important part of the UK’s renewable energy future.
That said, it is not all plain sailing ahead. A big area of interest is around workforce — what skills are needed, how quickly they’re needed, and how to build the capacity required to deliver at scale. Grid infrastructure, always a topic for discussion, was once again highlighted as a critical issue to enable the progression of the industry.
Overall, the message was clear: great progress has been made in getting projects to this stage, but the focus now needs to shift to delivery. That means strengthening and scaling the supply chain, delivering on port infrastructure investment to support construction and deployment, identifying and equipping the future workforce, and ensuring the grid can support what’s coming.
The industry is ready to move forward and deliver. There’s a huge opportunity for the Celtic Sea and its supply chain to not just participate, but really lead the next phase of marine energy development. I look forward to continuing these conversations and playing a part in helping to turn this potential into reality.