The UK’s Crown Estate has announced plans for a new offshore wind leasing round in the first half of 2027, with the aim of supporting the growth of clean energy and contributing to job creation and economic activity.
Offshore Wind Leasing Round 6 is expected to offer seabed rights for projects amounting to approximately 6GW or more of capacity, mainly in the North East of England.
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The majority of these sites will be located in water depths suitable for fixed-bottom wind technology, pending further consultation with stakeholders and alignment with the National Energy System Operator’s strategic energy and electricity network plans.
The Crown Estate has started engaging with market participants and relevant sectors to determine site locations, project scale and the approach for the tender process.
This process will include refining commercial models and ensuring consistency with both market needs and national objectives.
The leasing round aims to build on the UK’s existing offshore wind capacity, which stands at nearly 17GW, with an additional 12GW under construction.
According to the Crown Estate, this new round has the potential to support up to 10,000 direct jobs and generate more than £12bn ($16bn) in economic value.
Further development opportunities have been identified beyond the North East, including in regions such as the South West and Wales.
These may be considered for subsequent leasing rounds using the Crown Estate’s Marine Delivery Routemap, a new management tool that incorporates spatial data from various marine sectors.
The Port of Blyth will host discussions involving the Crown Estate, Energy Minister Michael Shanks, local authorities and business representatives to examine prospects for offshore wind deployment in the area.
In December last year, the Crown Estate allocated £13m through its Supply Chain Accelerator programme to support 16 projects nationwide, including £275,000 for improvements at the Port of Blyth.
Developers granted seabed rights will be able to select appropriate technologies for their projects; however, most sites are expected to favour fixed-bottom wind due to established supply chains.
Responding to the Crown Estate’s announcement, RenewableUK deputy chief executive Jane Cooper said: “This new leasing round for projects off the North East coast of England will open up a significant amount of new capacity to the UK’s energy system – enough to power more than six million homes.”
The Crown Estate will continue to gather market feedback on commercial options for this leasing round before finalising tender details.
All decisions regarding site selection and tender design will reflect ongoing consultation with industry stakeholders and policymakers.
