{"id":306,"date":"2018-10-19T16:20:00","date_gmt":"2018-10-19T14:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/?p=306"},"modified":"2020-02-17T11:33:34","modified_gmt":"2020-02-17T10:33:34","slug":"offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/","title":{"rendered":"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\nAdvocates of floating offshore \nwind platforms say they are cheaper to run and install, less disruptive \nto sea life, and have greater output than near-shore alternatives. Image\n credit \u2013 WindFloat\n\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As wind turbines become \nincreasingly familiar sights along shorelines, developers of offshore \nfloating platforms, which harness the powerful winds further out to sea,\n are seeking to establish their technologies as a major viable source of\n clean energy. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bottom-fixed offshore wind turbines \u2013 with\n foundations in the seabed \u2013 face depth constraints and can only be used\n in relatively shallow coastal waters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Floating offshore platforms can instead be\n built and installed in almost any marine environment. They are cheaper \nto run and install, more environmentally friendly to sea life, and have \ngreater output, according to those behind the technologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s more, positioning the turbines well offshore exposes them to the generating power of stronger winds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018The further you get from the coast, the \nmore wind you normally get,\u2019 said Jos\u00e9 Pinheiro, project director of \nenergy company EDP Renewables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commercial viability<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The energy company is part of the WindPlus\n consortium, set up by Energias de Portugal, REPSOL and Principle Power \nInc., which has secured a \u20ac60 million loan from the European Investment \nBank under the InnovFin Energy Demonstration Projects instrument. This \nwill allow it to scale up a pilot demonstration project, WindFloat<\/a>, and take it out to deeper water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018With this WindFloat technology you have \nthe ability to harness the wind where you have it most,\u2019 Pinheiro said, \nadding that this meant there were many more potential sites than are \navailable for bottom-fixed wind power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 2017 study<\/a>\n showed that wind power generation over some ocean areas can exceed \npower generation on land by a factor of three or more. However, the \ntechnology is mostly still at testing phase as the bases of floating \nturbines need to be engineered differently from their near-shore \ncounterparts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pinheiro said the new financing for the \nWindFloat Atlantic project, to be installed at a site off the northern \ncoast of Portugal, is crucial to showing the commercial viability of the\n technology. It is also a long-term test of its technical attributes in \ntough conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three-column, semi-submersible \nplatform will be mounted with an 8.4 megawatt turbine, floating in \nwaters 85 to 95 metres deep. It is anchored at three points, as is \ncommon for oil and gas production facilities in deep water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Scaling up can reduce the unit costs a \nlot, so we are really contributing to showing that offshore floating can\n achieve the targets that have been set for it,\u2019 Pinheiro said. \u2018It can \nalso show the convergence of the technology with business opportunities \naround the globe.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WindFloat Atlantic seeks to take advantage\n of onshore construction and assembly to reduce costs, and it is not \nalone in choosing that path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2018The further you get from the coast, the more wind you normally get.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jos\u00e9 Pinheiro, project director, EDP Renewables<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hybrid float<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ocean Flow Energy, based in northeast England, leads the FLOWSPA<\/a>\n project to develop a novel offshore wind support platform \u2013 Starfloat \u2013\n based on two well-known platform systems used in offshore oil and gas \nproduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Project coordinator Graeme Mackie says \ntheir design consists of a floating spar, a structure used in deep water\n oil production that looks \u2018like a tower that floats (vertically) in the\n sea\u2019 which is moored by chains and anchors in the seabed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Normally, spars have to be immersed in \nextremely deep water, so to reduce this requirement, the team has added a\n semi-submerged buoyancy \u2018collar\u2019 made up of several floats that \nsurround the neck of the spar at the waterline and keep it raised. This \nhybrid satisfies stability and motion demands even in harsh \nenvironments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FLOWSPA engineers devised an assembly \nstrategy that allows the platform to be readily built at existing \nonshore shipyards, and enlists the local economies, which have been in \ndecline in many parts of the world. The turbine is then towed out to \ndeep water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The simplicity of the design, the use of \nexisting shipbuilding facilities and nearby assembly rather than the \non-site construction of fixed installations, as well as the cheaper \ndeployment of the complete platform, all contribute to reducing costs, \nMackie said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their target is to generate electricity at\n about 60 euros per megawatt-hour \u2013 competitive with current inshore \nwind farms \u2013 for a large-scale facility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018(This) is achievable if you build these devices in serious production,\u2019 Mackie added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To get deep sea wind platforms up and running quickly, the Spanish SATH<\/a>\n project has taken a different approach to its design, which comprises a\n twin hull with submerged plates, and is built mostly from concrete, \nrather than steel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is built and assembled onshore and then\n towed to its final position and hooked up \u2013 at a single point \u2013 to \npre-installed mooring chains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018It can rotate around, so it is always \nfacing the wind,\u2019 said David Carrascosa, chief technology officer at \nSaitec Offshore Technologies, coordinator of the project. \u2018The \nmechanical connection (for the mooring point) is through a bearing, and \nthe electrical connection through a rotating electrical swivel.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having a single connection point and power\n transmission cables out at sea allow the platform to be quickly \nconnected to the mooring infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being able to construct onshore and \nrapidly install the platforms mean that SATH bypasses the costly weather\n problems that can disrupt more time-consuming and complicated \ninstallations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carrascosa said the platform\u2019s materials \nand construction approach, using local resources, means it can be \nmass-produced at sites around the world, close to where the wind \nturbines will be deployed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sea life<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With lower capital and operating expenses \ncome major cost savings over the lifetime of the platform, particularly \nin depths greater than about 50 metres.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018By making offshore floating wind \nproduction more competitive, we can see a big market ahead, and that is a\n goal for all of us,\u2019 Carrascosa said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the projects\u2019 different approaches\n to engineering and materials, all say they have embraced methods of \nconstruction and installation that reduce their impact on sea life, \ncompared to fixed installations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With much of the construction and assembly\n done onshore or nearby, the projects can minimise the noise levels that\n researchers cite as a major problem for marine mammals. Carrascosa said\n that disruption is also reduced by avoiding the need to embed major \nstructures in the seabed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018People (in the industry) are really aware\n of these issues affecting the mammals and that is something you can \navoid by using floating solutions,\u2019 he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The research in this article was funded by the EU. If you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Issue<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Innovative European companies can often \nfail to get funding to build the large-scale demonstration projects \nneeded to develop their ideas into commercially viable technologies or \nservices. This means they can fall into the so-called valley of death \nbetween innovation and commercialisation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To bridge this gap and support the \nimplementation of the EU\u2019s Strategic Energy Technology Plan, the \nEuropean Commission and the European Investment Bank created the InnovFin Energy Demonstration Projects<\/a> facility.\n Up to EUR 800 million is available to help companies demonstrate the \ncommercial viability of their first-of-a-kind projects in the fields of \nrenewable energy, energy storage, smart grids, and carbon capture \nutilisation and storage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Windfloat loan is the fifth such deal \nand, at \u20ac60 million, the largest so far. Previous loans include \u20ac52.5 \nmillion for the manufacturing of battery cells for use in transport, \nenergy storage and industry, \u20ac30 million for a gasification plant to \nconvert wood residues and industrial waste into electricity and heat, \n\u20ac15 million to set up a manufacturing line for new and highly-efficient \nphotovoltaic technology, and \u20ac10 million to build a demonstration unit \nthat converts wave energy into electrical power.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Advocates of floating offshore wind platforms say they are cheaper to run and install, less disruptive to sea [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":385,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nOffshore wind farms to test business in deep water – Saitec Offshore Technologies<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admSAI\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d9a3d7e5dbb1815d27b6e2820b81a58d\"},\"headline\":\"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-10-19T14:20:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-02-17T10:33:34+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/\"},\"wordCount\":1282,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/\",\"name\":\"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water – Saitec Offshore Technologies\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-10-19T14:20:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-02-17T10:33:34+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":768},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/\",\"name\":\"Saitec Offshore Technologies\",\"description\":\"Concrete floating foundations for a global offshore wind industry\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Saitec Offshore\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/logo_saitec_offshore.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/logo_saitec_offshore.png\",\"width\":600,\"height\":247,\"caption\":\"Saitec Offshore\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/x.com\/saitecoffshore\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/saitec-offshore-technologies\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UClhozAPoF-YWSALw9Tp1iJw\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d9a3d7e5dbb1815d27b6e2820b81a58d\",\"name\":\"admSAI\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water – Saitec Offshore Technologies","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/"},"author":{"name":"admSAI","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d9a3d7e5dbb1815d27b6e2820b81a58d"},"headline":"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water","datePublished":"2018-10-19T14:20:00+00:00","dateModified":"2020-02-17T10:33:34+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/"},"wordCount":1282,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/","url":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/","name":"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water – Saitec Offshore Technologies","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg","datePublished":"2018-10-19T14:20:00+00:00","dateModified":"2020-02-17T10:33:34+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/molinos004.jpg","width":1024,"height":768},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/offshore-wind-farms-to-test-business-in-deep-water\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Offshore wind farms to test business in deep water"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/","name":"Saitec Offshore Technologies","description":"Concrete floating foundations for a global offshore wind industry","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#organization","name":"Saitec Offshore","url":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/logo_saitec_offshore.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/logo_saitec_offshore.png","width":600,"height":247,"caption":"Saitec Offshore"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/saitecoffshore","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/saitec-offshore-technologies\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UClhozAPoF-YWSALw9Tp1iJw"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d9a3d7e5dbb1815d27b6e2820b81a58d","name":"admSAI"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/306"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=306"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/306\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/385"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saitec-offshore.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}