RenewableUK Cymru

The Crown Estate announced partnerships with Equinor and Gwynt Glas (EDF/ESB joint venture) for two floating offshore wind farms in the Celtic Sea with 3GW combined capacity. The developments highlighted that the profits from Welsh wind resources flow to foreign state-owned corporations and the UK Treasury rather than to Welsh communities.

RenewableUK Cymru's advocacy for Crown Estate devolution is grounded in the industry's direct experience of the disconnect between Wales' enormous renewable energy potential and its lack of control over that potential. The Celtic Sea floating offshore wind developments — potentially meeting the electricity needs of 2.5 million homes — are being developed by Norwegian and French state-owned companies, with leasing fees flowing to the UK Treasury through the Crown Estate. RenewableUK Cymru argues that devolving the Crown Estate, as has been done in Scotland, would allow Wales to retain more economic benefit from its natural resources while also streamlining the planning and consenting process through a single Welsh framework rather than the current split between devolved planning and reserved Crown Estate powers. The National Infrastructure Commission for Wales described the situation bluntly: 'Wales provides the resource, others take the return' — a pattern it compared to Wales' historical exploitation of coal, slate, and water.