Key Workshop Findings: Offshore Wind and Security in the North Sea
30 May 2026
EIES, in partnership with RUSI’s Energy and Security Programme, hosted a workshop on offshore wind and security in the North Sea at RUSI’s offices in Whitehall on 29 April.
Offshore wind is already the single biggest generator of electricity in the UK and,over time, is expected to become more critical to the energy system, and therefore national security. As new generation capacity is built and the economy electrifies, the North Sea will host more turbines, subsea cables, substations, and service vessels. This could displace imported energy with an additional domestic resource and distribute generation over a wide area, creating the opportunity to reduce the dependence of infrastructure on vulnerable nodes. But if security does not keep pace with rollout, the UK could also create new vulnerabilities.
The workshop convened 28 participants, including officials from the UK government and parliament; the police and armed forces; energy, defence and supply chain companies; insurance and consultancies; embassies; and independent experts. The workshop covered the physical security of offshore wind in the North Sea specifically, although some of the findings apply to all offshore infrastructure in UK waters.