Crown Estate Marine Supply Chain Accelerator Fund

A £50 million fund to help catalyse UK supply chain capacity and capability for offshore wind.

The Crown Estate has established a £50 million Supply Chain Accelerator fund to help catalyse the United Kingdom supply chain capacity and capability for offshore wind. An expanded second round of the Accelerator has now been launched, which builds on a successful first round in 2024 where nearly £5 million was awarded to 13 organisations.  

Businesses can apply for up to £1.5 million per eligible project, with The Crown Estate providing 50% match funding for early-stage development expenditure. The Crown Estate will also look for the option to participate in the capital investment phase.

The scope of the Accelerator has also been widened. Whilst the first round was aimed at projects supporting the development of floating offshore wind, the second round is available to projects facilitating the deployment of both fixed and floating offshore wind.   

In this round, projects or facilities that support the manufacturing, fabrication and late-stage testing of fixed and floating offshore wind components will be considered.

Ports which can support offshore wind (including through wet storage and the fabrication of operations and maintenance vessels) are also included within the scope, given the role that ports can play as important hubs for the construction, operation and maintenance of offshore wind farms.

Eligible activities within the development phase include:

• market research
• market assessment
• business planning
• concept design
• site selection
• site investigations
• surveys
• submissions of planning applications
• technical studies
• environmental studies
• design feasibility
• feasibility studies
• modelling studies
• investment case development

Find out more about the Supply Chain Accelerator Fund and how to apply.

First published 5 July 2024