UK to sign new offshore wind pact with European allies - where does this leave Ming Yang?
Ed Miliband will sign a new deal today to secure clean energy in the North Sea.
Questions remain on whether Chinese firm Ming Yang will be given the go ahead to open a huge turbine factory in Scotland as the UK is set to sign a new deal to jointly build offshore wind farms with its European neighbours.
UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is expected to sign the Hamburg Declaration today at the North Sea summit, which he says will secure energy sovereignty in an increasingly unstable world.
Mr Miliband said: “We are standing up for our national interest by driving for clean energy, which can get the UK off the fossil fuel rollercoaster and give us energy sovereignty and abundance.
“After our record renewables auction, we today go further by signing a clean energy security pact with European allies to ensure we maximise the clean energy potential for the North Sea.”
Three years ago North Sea countries pledged to build 300 gigawatts of offshore wind in the North Sea by 2050 in response to Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and the weaponisation of Europe’s energy supplies.
The Hamburg Declaration will see North Sea countries agree to deliver 100GW of this wind power through joint clean energy projects, including offshore wind farms connected to more than one country.
The statement of intent on cross-border projects will be signed by the UK, Germany, Belgium, Denmark The Netherlands. The planning, costs and market sharing will be split between all countries involved to speed up delivery.
The UK will also agree a deal with Germany to collaborate on subsea energy infrastructure.
German Energy Minister Katherina Reiche said: “The North Sea is a strategic key area for Europe’s energy and supply security.
“By planning expansion, grids and industry together and implementing them across borders, we are creating clean and affordable energy, strengthening our industrial base and increasing Europe’s strategic sovereignty.
“Today’s investment pact provides reliable perspectives for the offshore sector, secures creation of value in Europe, and brings future-proof jobs.”
However Germany has previously voiced its concerns about the use of Chinese wind turbines - last year a German government-backed report said Germany’s political system and social cohesion are at stake unless it restricts Chinese wind turbines in the country. It argued Beijing could purposefully delay projects, harvest sensitive data and remotely shut down turbines if given access to wind farms.
It comes as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer weighs up whether to allow Ming Yang to start operations in the Highlands.
The company is proposing a £1.5 billion investment to build a turbine factory in Scotland which they say will make the UK “the global hub for offshore wind technology” and create 3,000 jobs.
Earlier this month the UK Government approved a new Chinese embassy in London and Sir Keir is due to visit Beijing in the next week.
The summit in Hamburg today will also see agreements between Nato and European cyber security cooperation in the North Sea to see off any threats to Europe’s energy infrastructure.
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