Scotland's Offshore Wind Story - Biographies

Colin Imrie

Colin Imrie has been Deputy Director, Energy Markets Division, since its creation in September 2008. He also coordinates European Union related work on energy for the Scottish Government and works with the Scottish EU Energy Network.

He was previously Head of the Energy Consents Unit in the Scottish Government, leading the team dealing with applications for consent for energy projects under the Electricity Act and other legislation and works on related policy issues connected with planning and environmental law. Colin, who is 51, has worked in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and European Commission and has served as Energy and Nuclear attaché for the UK Permanent Representation in Brussels, when he chaired the Council Energy Working Group during the UK Presidency in 1998. He has been Head of European Structural Funds, Head of the Press Office and Head of Access to Justice in the Scottish Executive and worked from 2004-7 as a freelance consultant in a number of European countries on a range of European issues, including sustainable development and energy cooperation with Mediterranean countries. He speaks fluent French, German and Dutch (the national languages of Belgium, where he has lived for a number of years) and in his spare time works as a Scottish tourist guide.

Kevin Moran, Strategy and Business Development Director, Wood Group Renewable Energy Services

Kevin Moran commenced working for Wood Group Renewable Energy Services as Strategy and Business Development Director in July 2008. His early career was in the Merchant Navy where he attained the rank of Chief Engineer Officer. He subsequently returned to education at Strathclyde University where he graduated with a BEng (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering. Following this he entered the Oil and Gas industry where he was a Senior Subsea Engineer with a leading Turnkey Well Engineering Contractor in Aberdeen. He gradually moved into positions with a more commercial focus, leading to his current position which links his marine and offshore knowledge into the renewables sector.

In his current role Kevin’s focus is on developing the on and offshore O&M business while working with the other Wood Group divisions to provide owners, developers and operators with a complete lifecycle solution. He is a Chartered Engineer and currently completing his thesis for his MBA at the Strathclyde University Graduate School of Business.

Iain Todd, Renewables Champion to the Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG)

Iain Todd is a chartered engineer, who has worked in both the private sector and the Civil Service. He has held senior posts in the Health and Safety Executive, the Department of the Environment, and the Department of Trade and Industry, mostly on energy-related issues. Between 2000 and 2002, Iain was Director of Oil and Gas Development at the DTI in Aberdeen; then between 2002 and 2004 he was the DTI’s Director of Renewable Energy. As such, he was responsible for the first two years of the Renewables Obligation legislation, financial programmes of £300m, and initiatives to grow a UK renewables supply chain.

In June 2004 Iain returned to the private sector, and now works as a renewable energy consultant. Much of his time is given to his role as Renewables Champion to the Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG). In this role he acts as project manager for the planned Aberdeen offshore wind farm, which is intended not only to act as a power station for the city, but also as a national test centre for offshore wind technology. The potential of this latter role was reinforced at the end of January 2009, with an announcement by the European Commission that it planned to invest 40 million euros in the development of the test centre role of this project.

He is also currently working for the Scottish Government on the planned Scottish European Green Energy Centre in Aberdeen, and is Honorary Professor of Renewable Energy Policy at both Aberdeen University and the Robert Gordon University. He is a frequent presenter at conferences on renewable policy issues, most recently at the Global Wind Energy Conference in Beijing.

Lynne Vallance, Head of Offshore Renewables Policy Team, Scottish Government

Lynne graduated from the University of Glasgow in 2000 with a MA in Politics. Joining the Scottish Government in 2001, Lynne worked on EU state aid policy ensuring publically funded projects with EU Competition Law.

Lynne was seconded to the European Commission in Brussels in 2003, working in DG Competition. She then moved to the UK Permanent Representation to the EU (UKRep), the UK Government department working within the EU. Lynne was responsible for representing the UK’s interests in EU Competition Policy and Company Law in EU negotiations.

Returning to the Scottish Government in 2006, Lynne led the EU Strategy team, advising Ministers on EU engagement and drafting the Scottish Government’s European Strategy.

Lynne joined the Scottish Government’s Renewables Energy team in 2008. Initially leading the design of the Saltire Prize, she now heads up the Offshore Renewables policy team. With Government’s strong ambitions for offshore renewables, Lynne’s focus is on working with industry and public sector bodies to support the establishment of thriving marine and offshore wind industries in Scotland. She is chair of the Offshore Wind Industry Group (OWIG) and co-chair of the Marine Energy Group (MEG).