Cleantech pioneer earns King’s Award

A North East cleantech company has been recognised for its international growth and contribution to the global energy transition.

Kinewell, based in Wallsend, near Newcastle, has received a King’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade, one of the UK’s highest business honours.

The award, presented to the Kinewell team at its North Tyneside head office today (March 24) by His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Tyne and Wear, Ms Lucy Winskell OBE, recognises sustained export growth, with the company’s software deployed in offshore wind projects across Europe, Asia and the Americas.

The Lord-Lieutenant said: “I am delighted to present this prestigious award on behalf of His Majesty The King to Kinewell, who are quite clearly at the leading edge of software technology which optimises the design of offshore windfarms. 

“Here in Tyne and Wear we can be proud of such a successful company which supports the global offshore wind market.”

Kinewell’s AI-powered platform supports the planning and development of offshore wind farms, helping optimise turbine placement, cable routing and energy transmission to improve efficiency and reduce costs.

Its technology has been used by major energy firms including SSE Renewables and Equinor, playing a role in accelerating the shift towards lower-carbon energy systems.

Dr Andrew Jenkins, founder and chief executive of Kinewell, who earlier in the day appeared as a panellist at NET’s Vision 31 event, said: “It was a huge honour to host the Lord-Lieutenant and receive such a prestigious accolade from His Majesty King Charles III.

"Our state-of-the-art infrastructure optimisation solutions are fast-becoming the go-to software of choice for developers and consultants of offshore wind farms the world-over, helping to speed up development times and significantly reduce costs.

“They are also playing a key role in helping countries decarbonise their power grids, lower energy bills, improve energy security and combat climate change so it is fantastic to see the team’s efforts to support the transition to net-zero – which we know is a cause the King also holds close to his heart – being recognised by such an award.”

The award follows the recent announcement that Kinewell has secured £750,000 from the North East Accelerate Fund to support further technology development, commercial expansion and the creation of ten new jobs as the business continues to scale internationally.

Dr Jenkins added: “Our team are the absolute backbone of everything we do so it is fantastic that they have been able to share this success by joining us for both the fundraising and award announcements.

“It really does mean the world to them to see their efforts being recognised by such acclaim and backing and hopefully there are yet more positive announcements to follow over the coming weeks and months as we continue to innovate and grow.”

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