Contractor will design and build offshore wind farms with Hochtief and Arup

Costain has teamed up with Hochtief and Arup in a venture to design and build offshore wind farms in a market that some estimate will be worth £20bn by 2020.

The alliance will seek to take advantage of efforts by the government to curb carbon emissions through increased use of the renewable energy market.

Various developers and energy providers completed a bidding process this year with the Crown Estates (which owns the rights to the seabed around the UK) for round 3 of the licences to allow companies to install the wind turbines.

Colin Duff, the Costain director leading the initiative, said: “If everybody develops the sites they say they’re going to - and that depends on how far they take round 3, what happens to other forms of energy and our use of energy - the offshore market could be worth £200bn by 2020. The foundation element of that is £50bn.”

Bidding concluded this year between various developers and energy providers and the Crown Estates (which owns the rights to the seabed around the UK) for ’Round 3’ of the licences that will allow companies access to the seabed to install the wind turbines.

The consortium is currently assessing suitable sites for port facilities to produce the foundations.

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