Renewable energy giant RWE has confirmed that it will participate in Scotland’s next offshore wind seabed rental process, called ScotWind, just as the application deadline is about to expire.

ScotWind is a seabed rental cycle, managed by Crown Estate Scotland, which aims to enable the construction of up to 10 gigawatts (GW) of new offshore wind farms in the country’s coastal waters.

The application window for registered applicants opened in January 2021 and the deadline for submitting applications was 5 p.m. on Friday July 16.

The tour of the seabed in which companies are asking for the right to build wind farms has aroused the interest of both “traditional†renewable energy giants such as Iberdrola, Orsted, Ocean Winds or Vattenfall, as well as oil majors seeking to diversify, such as Shell, TotalEnergies and BP.

Tom glover, the President of RWE UK Country said: “The ScotWind process is a crucial step for the Scottish Government as it achieves its ambitious target of 11 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2030.

“As a long-time partner and investor in the Scottish renewable energy industry, RWE is pleased to be able to support this through our participation. Our company is a highly experienced, innovative and globally recognized player in the offshore wind industry, and anticipates that ScotWind’s success would open up significant opportunities to revitalize the local supply chain, while helping to create important jobs, high quality and long term. We look forward to continuing as Scotland’s trusted partner in achieving its offshore ambitions “

In Scotland, RWE has approximately 480 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy capacity installed at onshore wind, offshore wind and hydropower sites, with a current development pipeline of over 350 MW.

The announcement of its participation in RWE said on Friday that it was also “rapidly” expanding its floating wind capacity.

“With partners, [RWE] undertakes pioneering work through three floating demonstration projects, in the United States, Spain and Norway, which will ensure that the company is uniquely positioned to deliver new projects in the deeper waters off the Scottish coast, secured as part of the rental cycle, â€said RWE.

According to information on the Crown Estate Scotland website, Scotland’s goal is to have 50% of the country’s overall energy consumption from renewable sources by 2030, and to achieve net zero emissions of ‘by 2045.

Scottish is the first offshore wind rental cycle in Scottish waters in a decade and is designed to help the country meet its emissions and climate reduction targets.