The UK-based construction services company Balfour Beatty teamed up with the Norwegian engineering company Aker Solutions for the development of projects in the United Kingdom’s (UK) offshore wind capacity. Both companies signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the complete development of future projects, where employees will work on them together from both sides in order to deliver complete solutions and identify opportunities.
Both companies have a long history of delivering complicated infrastructure and energy projects. Balfour Beatty has a long history of developing large projects in the UK energy sector as well as in civil engineering, while Aker Solutions is well-known for developing complex concrete structures. The Norwegian company also works on developing projects that are aligned with the energy transition and the energy needs of the future. The key advancement of the partnership is the development of future concrete floating and gravity-based solutions for offshore wind projects in the North Sea.
“We are delighted to partner with Aker Solutions to respond to this requirement for increased offshore generation”, said the CEO of Balfour Beatty for major projects, Stephen Tarr.
On the other hand, Jason Brown, the head of renewables of Aker Solutions in the UK, added that “Offshore wind has a pivotal role to play in increasing our use of renewable energy, which in turn is essential to achieving energy security and reducing carbon emissions”. He also stated that it is possible to accomplish the UK’s 50 GW offshore wind goal, by moving towards deeper waters for the deployment of offshore wind, and that these solutions can be less carbon-intensive.
Balfour Beatty as a leading infrastructure group targets domination of the UK energy and infrastructure market. The UK’s primary goal was 40 GW offshore wind capacity by 2030, which was later increased to 50 GW installed capacity by the same year, from which 5 GW will be floating wind.
