The North Sea may soon be a safer place for whales as wind developers and oil drillers prepare to fit noise deterrent devices to offshore projects to keep the mammals out of harm’s way.

Research undertaken by Orsted, the wind developer formerly known as Dong Energy, and Norway’s Statoil has revealed that minke whales show “a clear response” to the underwater deterrent which could help to protect the North Atlantic species while reducing costs during construction.

The whales respond to the frequency of the device by avoiding the area and increasing their speed as they bypass the range of the device around the construction zone. Currently wind turbine builders need to employ workers to keep an eye out for whales and call for construction to pause if the animals venture too close to the work.