World’s First Floating Wind Farm To Undergo First Major Maintenance Campaign, Turbines To Be Towed To Norwegian Port
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
The world’s first commercial-scale floating wind farm, the 30 MW Hywind Scotland, officially entered the operations and maintenance (O&M) phase in October 2017. After a little over six years of operation, the wind farm’s Siemens Gamesa wind turbines are now due for some major maintenance work.
And this is the first paragraph.
While offshore wind farms undergo turbine maintenance work more than once during their lifespans and tasks such as major component exchange are nothing uncommon, this is the first time a campaign of this kind will be done on a floating farm.
Hywind Scotland has a web site, where this is said on the home page.
The world’s first floating wind farm, the 30 MW Hywind Scotland pilot park, has been in operation since 2017, demonstrating the feasibility of floating wind farms that could be ten times larger.
Equinor and partner Masdar invested NOK 2 billion to realise Hywind Scotland, achieving a 60-70% cost reduction compared with the Hywind Demo project in Norway. Hywind Scotland started producing electricity in October 2017.
Each year since Hywind Scotland started production the floating wind farm has achieved the highest average capacity factor of all UK offshore windfarms, proving the potential of floating offshore wind farms.
This news item from Equinor is entitled Equinor Marks 5 Years Of Operations At World’s First Floating Wind Farm, says this about the capacity factor of Hywind Scotland.
Hywind Scotland, located off the coast of Peterhead, Scotland, is the world’s first floating offshore wind farm and the world’s best-performing offshore wind farm, achieving a capacity factor of 54% over its five years of operations. Importantly, Hywind Scotland has run to high safety standards, marking five years of no loss time injuries during its operation.
Any capacity factor over 50 % is excellent and is to be welcomed.
Maintaining A Floating Wind Farm
One of the supposed advantages of floating wind farms, is that the turbines can be towed into port for maintenance.
This first major maintenance of a floating wind farm, will test that theory and hopefully provide some spectacular pictures.
UK Offshore Wind In 2030 – Calculated January 2024
With the election coming up in the next year, I thought I’d add how much offshore wind will be available in the next few years.
In October 2023, according to this Wikipedia entry, there were offshore wind farms consisting of 2,695 turbines with a combined capacity of 14,703 megawatts.
These wind farms are due to be commissioned between now and the end of 2030.
- Dogger Bank A – 1235 MW – 2023
- Neart Na Gaoithe – 450 MW – 2024
- Dogger Bank B – 1235 MW – 2024
- Forthwind – 12 MW – 2024
- Moray West – 882 MW – 2025
- Dogger Bank C – 1218 MW – 2025
- Sofia Offshore Wind Farm – 1400 MW – 2026
- East Anglia 3 – 1372 MW – 2026
- East Anglia One North – 800 MW – 2026
- East Anglia Two – 900 MW – 2026
- Pentland – 100 MW – 2026 – Floating
- Hornsea Three – 2852 MW – 2027
- Norfolk Boreas, Phase 1 – 1380 MW – 2027
- Llŷr 1 – 100 MW – 2027 – Floating
- Llŷr 2 – 100 MW – 2027 – Floating
- Whitecross – 100 MW – 2027 – Floating
- Morecambe – 480 MW – 2028
- Bellrock – 1200 MW – 2028 – Floating
- Mona – 1500 MW – 2029
- Morgan – 1500 MW – 2029
- West of Orkney – 2000 MW – 2029
- Rampion 2 Extension – 1200 MW – 2030
- Norfolk Vanguard East – 1380 MW – 2030
- Morven – 2907 MW – 2030
- Norfolk Vanguard West – 1380 MW – 2030
- Berwick Bank – 4100 MW – 2030
- Outer Dowsing – 1500 MW – 2030
- Broadshore – 900 MW – 2028 – Floating
- Caledonia – 2000 MW – 2030
- Stromar – 1000 MW – 2028 – Floating
- N3 Project – 495 MW – 2030
- Muir Mhòr – 798 MW – 2030 – Floating
- North Falls – 504 MW – 2030
- Spiorad na Mara – 840 MW – 2031
- Bowdun – 1008 MW – 2033
- Ayre – 1008 MW – 2033 – Floating
- Buchan – 960 MW – 2033 – Floating
These can give these totals for the next few years.
- 2023 – 14.70 GW
- 2024 – 17.64 GW
- 2025 19.74 GW
- 2026 – 24.31 GW
- 2027 – 28.81 GW
- 2028 – 32.39 GW
- 2029 – 37.39 GW
- 2030 – 53.65 GW
- 2031 – 54.50 GW
- 2032 – 54.50 GW
- 2033 – 57.47 GW
Note.
- The Government’s 50 GW target of offshore wind power by 2030 has been achieved.
- A total of 7.27 GW of floating wind power has been installed.
- The Government’s target of 5 GW of floating offshore wind power by 2030 has also been achieved.
Currently, the UK is generating 37.49 GW of electricity.
Aker Solutions To Pilot Floating-Wind Power Hub
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Aker Solutions.
This is the sub-heading.
Aker Solutions to pilot world’s first subsea power distribution system for floating offshore wind at Norway´s METCentre
These four paragraphs describe the system and explain how it works.
Note.
Aker Solutions has signed a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract with the Marine Energy Test Centre (METCentre) in Norway to pilot new subsea power system technology which has the potential to significantly reduce the costs and complexity of offshore wind farms.
The project will see Aker Solutions provide new power transmission technology, Subsea Collector, for the METCentre’s offshore wind test area which today consists of two floating offshore wind turbines located 10 kilometers off the southwestern coast of Karmøy, Norway. The test area will expand to seven floating offshore wind turbines from 2026.
Subsea Collector provides an alternative solution to connect multiple wind turbines electrically in a star configuration instead of the traditional daisy chain pattern, allowing for more flexibility in offshore wind farm architecture and construction. The design also allows for reduced cable length per turbine and park, as well as less vessel time and installation costs. Initial findings support total cost savings on a 1GW floating wind farm of up to 10 percent.
The main component parts of the Subsea Collector comprise a 66kV wet mate connection system provided by Benestad and subsea switchgear with supervisory control and data acquisition by subsea power and automation alliance partner, ABB. Installation will be carried out by Windstaller Alliance, an alliance between Aker Solutions, DeepOcean and Solstad Offshore. Aker Solutions will also provide the static export cable to shore.
Total cost savings of ten percent on any large project are not to be sneezed at.
I also feel that this sort of architecture will be ideal for a test centre, where configurations are probably changed more often.
The Invisible £20 Billion North Sea Project
I introduced Cerulean Winds in the two posts What Is INTOG? and Cerulean Winds Is A Different Type Of Wind Energy Company.
They have now expanded their page on the North Sea Renewables Grid.
It is well worth a look!
BW Ideol, ABP To Explore Serial Production Of Floating Wind Foundations At Port Talbot
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
BW Ideol and Associated British Ports (ABP) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will see the manufacturer of concrete floating wind foundations and ABP investigating the feasibility of serial production at Port Talbot. The MOU has been signed in preparation for the Celtic Sea leasing round, BW Ideol said on Monday (11 December).
These two paragraphs outline the plans of BW Ideol and ABP have for Port Talbot.
According to the company, Port Talbot is the only Celtic Sea port with the scale and technical capabilities to fully maximise the Celtic Sea supply chain opportunity and is ideally located as a manufacturing base since it lies 120-140 kilometres from the floating offshore wind areas outlined by The Crown Estate for the upcoming leasing round.
The news on the MOU between ABP and BW Ideol comes shortly after ABP announced plans to invest around GBP 500 million (approximately EUR 573 million) to upgrade a site in Port Talbot and turn it into a major floating offshore wind hub.
This Google Map shows Port Talbot Port.
Note.
- It also looks like there is a Heidelberg Cement facility at the South side of the port.
- Port Talbot also has a Tata steelworks.
- The railway and the M4 Motorway are nearby.
- There’s certainly a lot of water.
The port appears well-placed for raw materials and there is quite a bit of free space to build and launch the concrete floaters.
This page on the BW Ideol web site describes their Floatgen demonstrator.
The first section is headed by BW Ideol’s First Floater In Operation, where this is said.
Built around a European consortium of 7 partners, Floatgen is a 2MW floating wind turbine demonstrator installed off the coast of Le Croisic on the offshore experimentation site of the Ecole Centrale de Nantes (SEM-REV). This project is being supported by the European Union as part of the FP7 programme. Floatgen is France’s first offshore wind turbine. 5 000 inhabitants are supplied with its electricity.
It looks like it is or almost is a proven system.
The page talks of two large benefits.
- Innovation at all levels.
- The highest local content of any floating wind turbine.
For the second, the following is said
In comparison to other steel floating foundations, which are imported from abroad, the use of concrete for BW Ideol’s floating foundation allows the construction to be located as close as possible to the deployment site. Construction at the Saint-Nazaire port was therefore a natural and optimal solution and has created a lot of local content. Additionally, the mooring system was manufactured by LeBéon Manufacturing in Brittany. For the majority of all other components or logistical activities, the Floatgen partners have also opted for suppliers within the Saint-Nazaire region.
Note.
- Will ABP and BW Ideol use a similar philosophy at Port Talbot?
- Will low-carbon concrete be used to construct the floaters?
I can certainly see the logic of BW Ideol and ABP getting together at Port Talbot.
South Korea, UK Strengthen Offshore Wind Ties
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
The Republic of Korea (ROK) and the UK have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) concerning cooperation on offshore wind energy
These three paragraphs outline the MoU.
The UK and ROK already have a proven relationship in offshore wind, with large-scale investments in the UK’s supply chain and in the development of ROK’s offshore wind sector.
This MoU emphasises the will to build on this existing cooperation to accelerate deployment, address barriers to trade, and encourage mutual economic development through regular government-to-government dialogue and business-to-business cooperation, according to the partners.
The participants will support the UK and ROK’s offshore wind deployment by sharing experience and expertise from their respective sectors.
These are my thoughts.
The British And The Koreans Have A Long Record Of Industrial Co-operation
My own experience of this, goes back to the last century, where one of the biggest export markets for Artemis; the project management system, that I wrote was South Korea.
We had started with Hyundai in Saudi Arabia, where the Korean company was providing labour for large projects.
I can remember modifying Artemis, so that it handled the Korean won, which in those days, came with lots of noughts.
The Korean, who managed their Saudi projects returned home and luckily for us, wanted a system in Korea.
Paul, who was our salesman for Korea, used to tell a story about selling in Korea.
Our Korean friend from Hyundai had setup a demonstration of Artemis with all the major corporations or chaebols in Korea.
Paul finished the demonstration and then asked if there were any questions.
There was only one question and it was translated as “Can we see the contract?”
So Paul handed out perhaps a dozen contracts.
Immediately, after a quick read, the attendees at the meeting, started to sign the contracts and give them back.
Paul asked our friendly Korean, what was going on and got the reply. “If it’s good enough for Hyundai, it’s good enough for my company!”
The King Played His Part
King Charles, London and the UK government certainly laid on a first class state visit and by his references in his speech the King certainly said the right things.
I always wonder, how much the Royal Family is worth to business deals, but I suspect in some countries it helps a lot.
With Artemis, we won two Queen’s Awards for Industry. Every year the monarch puts on a reception to which each company or organisation can send three representatives. I recounted my visit in The Day I Met the Queen.
For the second award, I suggested that we send Pat, who was the highest American, in the company.
Later in his career with the company, when he was running our US operations, Pat. found talking about the time, he met the Queen and Prince Philip, very good for doing business.
I wonder how many business and cooperation deals between the UK and Korea, will be revealed in the coming months.
This Deal Is Not Just About The UK And Korea
This paragraph widens out the deal.
In addition, participants accept to promote business activities and facilitate opportunities for UK and ROK companies to collaborate in ROK and the UK, as well as joint offshore wind projects in third countries, according to the press release from the UK Government.
An approach to some countries without the usual bullies of this world may offer advantages.
Has One Secondary Deal Already Been Signed?
This paragraph talks about a recent deal between BP, Dutch company; Corio and the South Koreans.
The news follows the recent announcement from South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy that two UK companies, Corio Generation and BP, submitted investment plans for offshore wind projects in South Korea totalling about EUR 1.06 billion.
This deal was apparently signed during the state visit.
There’s A Lot Of Wind Power To Be Harvested
These last two paragraphs summarise the wind potentials of the UK and Korea.
The UK has the world’s second-largest installed offshore wind capacity, with a government target to more than triple this capacity by 2030 to 50 GW, including 5 GW of floating offshore wind.
Back in 2018, the South Korean Government set a 2030 offshore wind target of 12 GW in its Renewable Energy 3020 Implementation Plan, which was reaffirmed by the now-former South Korea’s president Moon Jae-in in 2020. Since 2022, it has been reported that the country has a target of reaching 14.3 GW of offshore wind power by 2030.
Note that the UK’s population is almost exactly 30 % bigger than Korea’s.
So why will the UK by 2030, be generating three-and-half times the offshore wind power, than Korea?
Twenty days ago, I wrote UK And Germany Boost Offshore Renewables Ties, where I believe the sub-plot is about long-term power and energy security for the UK and Germany.
Long term, the numbers tell me, that UK and Irish seas will be Europe’s major powerhouse.
Australia’s Offshore Wind Market Could Significantly Benefit from Collaboration with UK Suppliers, Study Says
The title of this section, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
A new study has been launched that highlights significant opportunities for the UK to share its wind farm expertise with Australia’s emerging offshore wind market
These three paragraphs outline the study.
The Australian Offshore Wind Market Study, conducted by Arup, evaluates potential Australian offshore wind markets and analyses the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for UK support.
Key findings indicate that the Australian offshore wind market could “substantially” benefit from collaboration with the UK suppliers, given the UK’s 23 years of experience and its status as the second largest offshore wind market globally, boasting 13.9 GW of installed capacity as of 2023, according to the UK Government.
Currently, Australia has over 40 offshore wind projects proposed for development.
I believe that the Australians could be a partner in the deal between the UK and Korea, as all three countries have similar objectives.
Conclusion
The Korean and German deals. and a possible Australian deal should be considered together.
Each country have their strengths and together with a few friends, they can help change the world’s power generation for the better.
- Just as the UK can be Europe’s powerhouse, Australia can do a similar job for South-East Asia.
- Any country with lots of energy can supply the green steel needed for wind turbine floats and foundations.
I would have felt the Dutch would have been next to join, as their electricity network is solidly connected to the UK and Germany. But after this week’s Dutch election, who knows what the Dutch will do?
ABP To Explore Opportunities For Offshore Wind Port In Scotland
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Associated British Ports (ABP) has signed an agreement to investigate an area for the development of infrastructure to support offshore wind manufacturing, assembly, and marshalling and green energy on the Cromarty Firth in Scotland, within the Inverness Cromarty Firth Green Freeport.
This first paragraph gives a bit more information including the possible location.
The area, located within the proposed Nigg and Pitcalzean area of the Green Freeport, could support both fixed-bottom and floating offshore wind projects and play a major role in the development of current and future ScotWind leasing rounds, said ABP.
This Google Map shows the location of the Port of Nigg.
Note.
- The Moray Firth with Inverness at its Southern end is the large body of water in the centre of the Southern half of the map.
- The Port of Nigg is on Cromarty Firth and marked by a red arrow.
- Nigg and Pitcalzean are to the North of the port.
This second Google Map shows an enlarged view of the port.
Note.
- Pitcalzean House is in the North-East corner of the map.
- The Port of Nigg is in the centre of the map.
- The water to the West and South of the port is Cromarty Firth.
- The yellow structures in the port are fixed-bottom foundations for wind farms.
Inverness & Cromarty Firth Green Freeport has a web site.
A Quote From Henrik Pedersen
Henrik Pedersen is CEO of ABP and the article quotes him as saying this.
We’re excited to explore the potential of Nigg, applying our experience across the UK, including at our Ports of Grimsby, Hull, Lowestoft and Barrow which already host significant offshore wind activity and at Port Talbot, where we are developing a Floating Offshore Wind port project. We look forward to working with key local partners, the community, and public sector stakeholders.
The article also has this final paragraph.
The Floating Offshore Wind Taskforce’s recently published “Industry Roadmap 2040”, estimated that planed floating offshore wind projects in Scottish waters alone will require three to five integration ports.
There is certainly going to be a significant number of ports, that will be supporting offshore wind activity.
The Crown Estate Refines Plans For Celtic Sea Floating Wind
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Crown Estate.
This is the first part of the press release.
The Crown Estate has set out further details on its plans for Offshore Wind Leasing Round 5, which aims to establish new floating offshore wind technology off the coast of Wales and South West England. The update includes details on the final planned locations for the new windfarms, as well as further information on a multi-million-pound programme of marine surveys.
Round 5 is expected to be the first phase of development in the Celtic Sea, with The Crown Estate working to catalyse and accelerate the UK’s energy transition, and to de-risk developments to speed up their deployment. This includes investing in an upfront Habitats Regulation Assessment, an extensive programme of marine surveys and working with the Electricity System Operator on a coordinated approach to grid design.
This latest update follows a period of engagement with developers and wider stakeholders on proposals set out in July over how to make best use of available space in the Celtic Sea. As a result of the feedback received, The Crown Estate has confirmed that:
- Three Project Development Areas (PDAs) of roughly equal size are expected to be made available to bidders, as opposed to the previously proposed four PDAs of varying sizes
- No bidder will be able to secure an Agreement for Lease for more than one PDA
- As a result of bringing forward three equal-sized PDAs – each with a potential capacity of up to 1.5GW – the overall capacity available through Round 5 has increased from a possible 4GW to up to 4.5GW, enough to power more than 4 million homes
Note.
- Another 4.5 GW of offshore wind should hit the queue.
- It sounds like they have been listening to developers.
To find out more of the potential of the Celtic Sea, I recommend this article on the Engineer, which is entitled Unlocking The Renewables Potential Of The Celtic Sea.
I’ll go along with what this article says and accept that 50 GW of wind capacity could be installed in the Celtic Sea.
Flotation Energy, Cobra File Onshore Planning Application For 100 MW Celtic Floater
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Flotation Energy and Cobra have submitted an onshore planning application to North Devon Council for their 100 MW White Cross floating offshore wind farm in the Celtic Sea.
These two paragraphs outline the project.
The proposed White Cross floating offshore wind farm will feature six to eight floating wind turbines installed some 52 kilometres off the North Devon coast.
The project’s associated cable route is proposed to make landfall at Saunton Sands, connecting to the electricity grid at the East Yelland substation.
The wind farm has its own web site.
This Google Map shows Saunton Sands and the village of Yelland
Note.
- Saunton Sands is indicated by the green marker in North-West corner of the map.
- Yelland is in the middle of the Eastern side of the map.
- I suspect there are innovative ways to connect the White Cross wind farm to the substation at East Yelland.
- The town of Appledore is on the estuary at the bottom of the map.
This second Google Map shows the town of Appledore.
At the bottom of the map is a marker labelled Harland & Wolff (Appledore).
Harland & Wolff (Appledore) has a web site, with these introductory paragraphs.
Located in North Devon at the mouth of the River Torridge, Harland & Wolff (Appledore) has a rich history of shipbuilding. More than 300 vessels have been built here including military craft, bulk carriers, LPG carriers, superyachts, ferries, and oil-industry support vessels.
The site features a 119m long covered drydock as part of the main building yard as well as the adjacent repair, commissioning and outfitting quay.
The Appledore Yard was founded in 1855. It constructed elements of the two Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers, bow sections for HMS Queen Elizabeth and built two Róisín class patrol boats for the Irish Naval Service.
The web site then lists an impressive list of facilities, which it underlines with this statement.
An expert team that is perfectly positioned to support the needs of the shipping and offshore industry.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see that Harland & Wolff (Appledore) will bid for the eight floaters for White Cross wind farm.
Artemis Technologies Unveils All-Electric CTV Design
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
UK-based Artemis Technologies has unveiled the design of its 100 per cent electric high-speed crew transfer vessel (CTV) for the offshore wind industry.
These are the first two paragraphs.
The Artemis EF-24 CTV has a maximum speed of 36 knots and a foiling range of 87 nautical miles.
The vessel is intended to transport up to 24 industrial personnel and the incorporation of the company’s Artemis eFoiler system should ensure a smooth and comfortable ride as well as reduce passenger and crew susceptibility to seasickness, Artemis said.
The Artemis Technologies web site has a home page with a video showing one of their hydrofoil workboats at speed in Belfast Harbour.
Conclusion
This looks to be viable technology.
The last two paragraphs, indicate how the vessels could be charged in the future.
Artemis Technologies, together with its partners, is developing offshore charging points for electric vessels.
The goal of the project is to design, build, and test an electric charge point situated on a wind turbine. This approach will access the infrastructure already in place such as a turbine platform and electrical cables, to provide renewable electricity to vessels.
Artemis Technologies is certainly a company that appears to be going places.
The Anonymous Widower 