The UK needs to significantly increase its output from floating offshore wind power, Treasury Minister James Cartlidge said following a visit to Pembrokeshire.

The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury said that – to tackle rising energy costs - there was a need for the UK to develop a sustainable long-term solution by deploying “our own clean, green and secure energy at massive scale”.

He added: “Recent figures from National Grid show that wind was the second largest source of electricity in 2022. On a single day in November more than 70 per cent of electricity was produced by wind – over 20GW.

“Of course, much of this offshore wind will have come from great windmills fixed to the shallow ocean floor of the North Sea – but if we are to truly scale up this extraordinary energy asset, we need to significantly increase our output from Floating Offshore Wind.

“And in Milford Haven this week I’ve seen how Wales could play a massive part in ramping up this nascent technology.

“Forty-five kilometres south of the world-famous Pembrokeshire coastline is where the 100MW Erebus floating wind project is set to be developed in the Celtic Sea.

“Visiting Pembrokeshire yesterday (February 9) with the Crown Estate, I was able to view the test and demo sites through a VR headset.

“I saw how this joint venture between Simply Blue Energy and Total Energies is primed to become one of the largest floating offshore wind projects in the world when constructed in 2026.

“The Crown Estate has also set out plans to lease an initial 4GW of floating offshore wind capacity in the Celtic Sea by 2035, which would be one of the first uses of new floating wind technology on a commercial scale.

“There could be as much as 24GW of floating offshore wind capacity available in the Celtic Sea waters of the UK and Ireland – and we need to grab it to achieve our net zero goals.”

He finished by saying the Floating Offshore Wind Demonstration Programme provided grant funding to 11 projects last year, covering integral infrastructure like mooring and foundations – reducing cost and increasing deployment.

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