How a Hexham company played a key role in the birth of the UK’s offshore wind industry

A NATIONAL report released this week marking the 25th anniversary of the UK’s offshore wind industry, shone the spotlight on the original Blyth Wind Farm – the nation’s first.

It was from those two turbines that a vast offshore industry encompassing some of the biggest windfarms in the world was to emerge in UK waters.

But the role played by a relatively small firm in land-locked Hexham played a pivotal role in making sure the turbines got off the ground at all.

Border Wind Limited of Hexham was the lead developer in the project in 2000, having built up experience of onshore wind development in the previous decade.

The prospect of constructing two working wind turbines offshore though was a much more challenging project, having never been attempted before in British waters and barely at all abroad.

David Still, CBE, was managing director of Border Wind, along with colleagues Bill Grainger, Anabel Gammidge and Norman Rogers and recalls the excitement and challenges of the time.

In fairness to the Border Wind team, they were no strangers to challenging projects.

David had been involved in the 1980s as a financial adviser on renewable energy in Papua New Guinea, while in outer Mongolia, he had helped explore remote power supplies.

Nevertheless, the Blyth Wind Farm offered many obstacles, in large part because no such thing had ever been attempted before in the UK.

Border Wind had a head start, though, having already demonstrated its capability with the development of onshore turbines on the pier in Blyth harbour.

The obstacles to overcome, however, were mighty – on and offshore – and could not have been achieved, David insists, were it not for the determination and goodwill of multiple partners.

He name-checks too many names to mention in this short article but many were Northumberland bodies, including the Port of Blyth, as well as national and international supporters.

Border Wind helped pull together an effective consortium which included Shell Renewables, E.ON and NUON.

Between them they grappled with the technical challenges, like how to site, service, secure and maintain the turbines in the most inhospitable conditions, with repurposed onshore components, where the very wind which made the farm economically viable, could also pose a potential threat to its safety.

Onshore, the challenges were no less daunting – agreements had to be reached with the Crown Estate, for example, owners of the territorial waters in which the farm would be built.

“Nowadays, wind farms are the main focus of the Crown Estate,” observes David, “but at the time it had never been done before and we have to be grateful for people like Frank Parrish at the Crown Estate for recognising the opportunity for what it was and working with us.”

Other obstacles included satisfying planning regulations, reassuring the Ministry of Defence and earning the acceptance of environmental experts and fishing interests.

But eventually, all the barriers were cleared and when the wind farm opened, at the dawn of the 21st century, North Sea energy would never be the same.

The two turbines became a fixture on the Blyth skyline for the next 19 years, prior to their decommissioning, and – like the first steps in space exploration – provided invaluable data to support and benefit the future missions in offshore wind that were to follow.

Martin Lawlor, chief executive of Port of Blyth, who has been at the port for more than three decades, remembers the impact of that experimental project at the time.

“Those two turbines were the first in the UK and genuinely the catalyst for the offshore wind sector we see today,” he said.

“A lot of lessons were learnt from it, they were also the first to be decommissioned here at Blyth as well. Very quickly, we started to see companies wanting to be part of it.

“The Government has committed to it now, of course, and it’s just grown from there.”

While Blyth was to go on to play an important role in the country’s ongoing green transition, Border Wind went on a transition of its own when it was acquired by AMEC – a major offshore company – shortly after the wind farm opened.

Soon after the wind farm was opened, Border Wind was acquired by AMEC – a major offshore company – where David went on to become vice-president, as well as chair of the British Wind Association.

He supported industrial growth and opportunities and went on to become a government adviser on the industry. Even today, having just moved into his 70s, he’s still involved in the wind industry.

He’s proud of the North East’s stellar contribution and involvement in offshore wind but hopes that UK governments will not take their eye off the ball when it comes to making the most of a sector the country can continue to be world leaders in.

“It has been great for the North East coast,” he said. “It has created good green jobs, high-value jobs, and real opportunities to boost the region’s economy for generations.

“I would never have believed then that the sector would have achieved as much as it has now.”

This week, he plans to raise a glass in his Northumberland local to celebrate and mark the 25th anniversary of a key development he knows is not just good for the region and for the country but also for the planet.

“Renewable energy is key to the future, and I’m glad that the UK has emerged as a world leader in offshore wind, helping to point the way,” he said.

“We need to consider what the world will look like for generations to come, and not just short-term gains. 

“It’s so important to preserve the environment we live in because we can ruin it very quickly, as all the scientific evidence shows, and offshore wind can be a big part of the solution.”

This year, the North East celebrated the 200th anniversary of its key role in the first industrial revolution, when George Stephenson and The Rocket brought the first commercial railways to the world in 1825.

Who is to say that a further 200 years from now, the successful construction of the Blyth Wind Farm, and those who created it, might also be recognised as another great North East contribution and a significant moment in the 21st century’s Green Industrial Revolution?