UK Government Gives Funding To Blue H Floating Wind Turbine Project

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Jan 14

Project Deepwater Turbine, a consortium led by Blue H including BAE Systems PLC (BA.LN), EDF Energy, CEFAS, SLP Energy and Romax, has been selected by the Energy Technology Institute, or ETI, as one of the first projects to receive funds from its GBP1.1 billion initiative.

The U.K.-based project aims to develop an integrated solution for a 5-megawatt floating turbine deployed offshore in waters between 30 and 300 meters deep.

Project Deepwater Turbine aims to reduce the cost of electricity generation to a level competitive with other forms of energy by simplifying the design and reducing construction, installation and maintenance costs of the wind turbines.

The Blue H consortium is one of three offshore wind consortia to receive funding from the ETI, a partnership between the U.K. government and BP PLC ( BP.LN), Caterpillar Inc (CAT), Electricite de France SA (1024251.FR), E.ON AG ( EOA.XE), Rolls Royce Group PLC (RYCEY) and Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB.LN).

"This ETI award represents another important milestone for our company in developing and completing its technical footprint," Blue H Chief Executive Neal Bastick said.

Blue H installed the world's first floating wind turbine prototype in the summer of 2008. The company is currently building the first operational 2 MW unit, which it expects to deploy offshore Italy this year.

The U.K. government is counting on the installation of 33 gigawatts of offshore wind power to help meet a binding European union target on renewable energy use and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.

-By Selina Williams, Dow Jones Newswires +44 207 842 9262; selina.williams@ dowjones.com