Tekmar Energy Limited, based in County Durham, is the market leading developer and manufacturer of Cable Protection Systems (CPS) for Offshore Windfarms (OWF). Branded as Teklink®, these systems protect power cables for their 25 operational life in a challenging, dynamic subsea environment.

Since entering the market with our unique system in 2008 we have worked on all of the major OWFs in the North West of England including Walney 1 & 2, Ormonde and Gwynt-y-Mor. Our range of projects and impressive track record has led to us working at all levels of the supply chain, developing and sharing our knowledge as the industry continues to mature and take on new challenges.

The Walney OWF installed the Teklink system to great success; the OWF is now the largest operational OWF in the world, powering 320,000 UK households. The second phase of the project (Walney 2) completed construction within 2 years, an incredible accomplishment. This achievement should not be underestimated, especially in a time of economic uncertainty and recession. We are extremely proud to be part of this project and recognise the excellent work of all parties involved to complete such a venture.

Overall the European renewable energy market is expected to grow aggressively over the next 20 years, with offshore wind dominating this expansion. Although still in its relative infancy, installed European offshore wind capacity is forecast to reach 150GW by 2030 – a 50 fold increase on the current 2.9GW capacity.

We believe that these targets represent an exciting opportunity for ourselves and other established British engineering firms to expand and become global leaders in the offshore wind energy market. Our chief executive officer, James Ritchie said, “Through investment and experience comes standardisation and best practise, which are crucial if offshore wind is going to continue to be the “renewable energy of choice” for European and other global economies.

The North West has played a key part in the developing and maturing stage of the industry’s lifecycle, demonstrating that with the right experience offshore wind will be continue to be considered as a crucial part of our energy mix going forward. We look forward to continuing our links with the North West during the installation of Gwynt-y-Mor and other projects in the near future.