Mersey Maritime - Technology Innovation Centre Bid

The public and private sectors across the Liverpool City Region have joined forces to bid for a pot of money that will help to develop a world-leading offshore renewable energy centre in Wirral.

Led by Mersey Maritime, partners including Cammell Laird, Peel Energy, Wirral Council, Liverpool University and The Mersey Partnership have made an application to the Government’s £200m Technology and Innovation programme with the aim of securing the necessary investment to develop a national Technology Innovation Centre (TIC) in Birkenhead.

If successful, the TIC will promote collaboration between UK businesses and universities to maximise Britain’s world-class research base and take forward innovation which meets the practical needs of the business world.

The centre will be based at Mersey Maritime’s existing facilities in Birkenhead and act as a national hub for offshore renewable energy bringing together in one place major companies including Peel Energy and Cammell Laird, that have a proven track record in technology transfer, offshore development as well as UK and international industry links.

The University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moore’s University, together with other leading UK research institutions such as C-Tech Innovation and EA Technology, will work with businesses to ensure that the commercial opportunities for new technology and ideas are maximised.

Cllr Phil Davies Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Planning Strategy said: “Offshore renewable energy is a rapidly growing multi billion pound global industry which includes technologies for offshore wind, wave and tidal power. We are uniquely placed in Wirral because of our geography and existing skills to develop these industries and drive the development of innovative science and technology that can be used by UK companies to gain a share of this growing market.

“A national TIC in Wirral would enable British companies to access technology and skills that would otherwise be beyond their reach and for research organisations to more effectively focus on helping firms develop new products and processes so that they can grow and prosper within this high-value industry. If we’re successful with our bid the TIC will lead to many new jobs for Wirral and the Liverpool City Region.”

The UK has ground-breaking expertise in offshore engineering and in the understanding of the seabed and marine environment and the Liverpool City Region, with its maritime heritage and skills, existing facilities and unique maritime infrastructure makes an ideal location for bringing together research relevant to this emerging sector with business acumen and expertise.

Jim Teasdale, Chief Executive of Mersey Maritime Group said: “Mersey Maritime is the regional body for the Maritime Sector but we are increasingly working with companies and partners UK-wide in the field of renewable technologies, as related opportunities open up. As such, we are ideally placed to bring together the combined expertise of public and private sector partners, and build upon Liverpool City Region’s already strong reputation for excellence in both maritime and innovation by locating a national Technology Innovation Centre here on Wirral.

“We believe Liverpool City Region is the ideal base for a national Technology Innovation Centre and we’re looking forward to working with partners to make that happen."