Buchan Offshore Wind has appointed Kent as Owner’s Engineer to drive the project into its next phase of development as it progresses towards Front End Engineering Design (FEED), marking another step on the road to Final Investment Decision (FID) and construction by the end of the decade.
The Owner’s Engineer, with significant support from their Scotland based team, will play a key role in derisking the project providing integrated technical and delivery expertise. The appointment also includes specialist support from Vekta Group and New Power Partners (NPP), further strengthening overall engineering capability.
Buchan Offshore Wind is at the forefront of industrialising the floating offshore wind sector in Scotland with the development of its near 1GW project 75 kilometres north‑east of Fraserburgh. Once operational, the wind farm has the potential to generate enough secure, stable home‑grown energy to power more than one million homes, contributing significantly to the UK’s long-term energy and economic security.
Acting as a pathfinder for commercial-scale floating offshore wind, the pioneering project contributes to economic security by harnessing Scotland’s existing engineering and supply chain expertise. Paving the way for the manufacture of Scotland’s first concrete floating foundations, using project partner BW Ideol’s proven Damping Pool® technology, it is anchoring a new industrial capability and acting as a catalyst for the Scottish floating offshore wind supply chain.
The appointment follows strong market engagement for the role and marks another milestone for Buchan Offshore Wind as it continues to drive progress across engineering, consenting, commercial and project delivery activities.
Over the past year, the project has made significant progress, including continued engineering maturation and progression of both offshore and onshore consenting activity.
Consent for its onshore electrical infrastructure was granted by Aberdeenshire Council in May and a determination by the Scottish Government on its offshore consent application is anticipated by the end of 2026.
Brian Horne, Technical and Engineering Director at Buchan Offshore Wind, said:
“We are pleased to appoint Kent in collaboration with Vekta Group and New Power Partners as Buchan’s Owner’s Engineer as we work towards imminent commencement of FEED having achieved significant progress over the past year across engineering, technical definition and project development.
“Kent brings strong offshore wind experience, deep offshore engineering heritage, and a highly capable integrated team, including Vekta Group and NPP. The appointment of this integrated delivery team further strengthens our technical capability and provides valuable expertise to the project as we maintain the momentum of project delivery.”
Jason Brown, Global Offshore Wind Market Director at Kent, said:
“Buchan is an important project for the future of floating offshore wind in the UK and demonstrates the continued momentum behind large-scale renewable energy developments in the region.
We are pleased to be working alongside Vekta Group and New Power Partners, bringing together complementary experience and capabilities to support the project team through the next stages of development.
Through our Owner’s Engineer role, we will support the safe, efficient and delivery-focused progression of the project as it advances towards execution.”
Kent – with offices in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen – brings extensive experience across both floating and fixed-bottom offshore wind, with current roles on major UK developments including Berwick Bank, Mona and Morgan, alongside floating offshore wind experience across projects including Kincardine and Llyr.
The Owner’s Engineer will support a broad range of activities across the next phase of the project, including electrical balance of plant development, FEED planning, package engineering coordination, preparation of FEED tender documentation and wider technical governance across Buchan’s delivery programme.
The Buchan Offshore Wind project joint venture has three equal partners, with highly relevant and complementary capability and expertise: BayWa r.e., an international renewable energy business with UK offices in Glasgow and Edinburgh; BW Ideol, a proven floating technology leader and international floating wind project co-developer; and Elicio, an experienced Belgian offshore wind developer, owner and operator.
