Brussels (Platts)--30Mar2009

The UK government plans to offer up to GBP10 million ($14 million) to
help speed up the technologies needed to develop more large-scale
multi-megawatt turbines in offshore wind farms, the UK Department of Energy
and Climate Change said Sunday.

The support is to be administered by the Low Carbon Energy Demonstration
Fund, part of the UK's Environmental Transformation Fund.

"Applications will open next month for up to GBP10 million of funding,
which will be allocated to businesses in June," said the DECC.

Offshore wind is also to benefit from changes to the UK's renewable
obligation certificate support scheme intended to give emerging renewable
technologies more support than relatively established ones, said the DECC.

From April 1, offshore wind farms and dedicated biomass plants are to
receive 1.5 renewable obligation certificates per MWh, while wave and tidal
projects are to receive 2 ROCs/MWh.

Onshore wind projects are to continue to receive 1 ROC/MWh, while support
has been cut for more established technologies such as landfill gas (0.25
ROCs/MWh) and co-firing biomass in coal-fired power stations (0.5 ROCs/MWh).

The measures are part of the UK government's efforts to ensure that it
meets a legally binding target to secure 15% of its energy from renewable
sources by 2020.