A strong interest in developing floating windfarm projects across the South Wales Coast, has been given the go ahead by the Crown Estate.

As owner of the territorial seabed around much of the UK, the Crown has announced it will be creating a new leasing opportunity for floating wind projects in the Celtic Sea.

Last year the crown granted Blue Gem Wind ( a joint venture between Total and Simply Blue Energy) seabed rights for a 96 MW project, 44 km off the coast of Pembrokeshire.

In their new leasing opportunity commercial-scale projects can apply for rights letting them create a project, up to three times the size of Blue Gem Wind's venture.

Energy Minister, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, said:

“Floating offshore projects are going to be vital in ensuring we unlock the full potential of natural resources in the windiest parts around our coastline and ensure the UK remains a world-leader in offshore wind.

“It is our ambition to ensure every home is powered by wind by 2030 and creating new leasing opportunities in the Celtic Sea will help us reach our ambitions, expanding our capabilities further and faster, creating jobs and generating investment as we continue building back greener.”

Blue Gem Wind said their project would potentially provide thousands of jobs for people in Pembrokeshire, for a period of up to 25 years. Therefore, a larger scale project in another area of the Celtic Sea could boost the economy of Wales.

Welsh Secretary, Simon Hart, said: “Wales’ natural resources underpinned the industrial revolutions of the past and our rich marine and offshore wind resources will be at the forefront of the next, green industrial revolution.

“This announcement will create opportunities that are up to 3 times larger than any rights previously awarded to floating wind in the UK, putting the Celtic Sea at the forefront of the green job revolution that comes with this technology.

“Providing investors with opportunities to make the most of our natural resources in a way that unlocks future technologies will be crucial as we pave the way to reach net zero emissions by 2050.”