Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing joined industry leaders and many of the most senior and influential academics from some of Europe’s top research institutes at the official inauguration of ORE Catapult's 7 MW demonstration offshore wind turbine in Fife.
The turbine becomes the world's most advanced, open access, offshore wind turbine dedicated to research, and offers complementary opportunities for training and development of skills vital for the future of the offshore wind industry.
Professor William Leithead is the Chair of the EPSRC Supergen Wind Hub, and Director of the EPSRC Doctoral Training Centre for Wind and Marine Energy Systems. He said: “The Levenmouth turbine is a real game changer for the UK academic community. Until now, we’ve lagged behind our European colleagues in not having open access to a full scale turbine that can be used to prove and de-risk new research outputs and technologies.
“Access to the Levenmouth turbine will make it possible to position the Scottish, and wider UK academic research community, right at the heart of European wind research, funding opportunities and technology development.”
Katharina Garus / ORE Catapult