Former McLaren CEO to lead UK offshore wind supply chain review

The UK offshore wind industry today launched a supply chain review that will be led by former McLaren Group chief executive Martin Whitmarsh.

The review is part of the industry's 2030 vision, released in March by the UK Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC), that calls for doubling of capacity from 13 GW installed or contracted now to 30 GW by 2030.

Expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2018, the review will produce a Supply Chain Development Plan with suggestions on increasing productivity and value at every stage of the UK offshore wind supply chain. The plan will set out how the industry can reach GBP 2.6 billion (USD 3.7bn/EUR 3bn) in annual exports by 2030 and support up to 27,000 jobs across the country, OWIC said.

"Our ambition is to grow the export value of offshore wind goods and services five-fold by 2030, by which time half of the revenue for UK suppliers in the sector could come from exports. This is a lucrative opportunity that UK companies want to be involved in," Benj Sykes, co-chair of OWIC and UK country manager for Ørsted (CPH:ORSTED), commented as he also said that Whitmarsh brings extensive experience in the automotive industry and has proven results in improving supply chain productivity.

(GBP 1 = USD1.429/EUR 1.158)

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