Category Archives: Offshore

From left, front, Ethel Alekna of Brigantine, Noreen McGahn, Holly Friel; back, Rita Mastella of Edison and Sue Franco.

MARGATE The communities of Brigantine, Ventnor and Margate are hosting a community meeting to discuss the potential impact of offshore wind development off the Jersey shore. The meeting will take place noon Saturday, May 20 at the Eugene A. Tighe Middle School Dominick A. Potena Performing Arts Center.

The meeting is being held in response to growing concern over potential environmental and economic impacts of offshore wind development.

Officials from the three municipalities have said they recognize the importance of renewable energy sources, but they have concerns about the impact on marine mammals and the ocean environment.

Weve already seen a large number of unexplained whale and dolphin deaths up and down the coast in the same areas that the ocean wind companies are doing their survey work and we need to know if there is any connection between the work theyre doing and these tragic deaths, Brigantine Mayor Vince Sera said.The issue of offshore wind development is a complex one, and its important that our community members have all the facts before construction moves forward. As elected officials, its our responsibility to make sure that any potential projects are thoroughly vetted and that the concerns of our residents are heard and addressed.

The community meeting will feature presentations by U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-02), NJ Sen. Vince Polistina (R-Atlantic), Dr. Bob Stern of Save LBI, attorney Chris Placitelle and Sera.

The meeting is sponsored by the Downbeach Coalition in partnership with Polistina and Assembly Representatives Claire Swift and Don Guardian.

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Offshore wind meeting to be held Saturday at the Margate PAC ... - Downbeach.com

Drilling contractor Northern Offshore has won extensions for three of its high-spec jack-up rigs to continue working for Qatargas for up to three more years.

Houston-based Northern Offshore said the Energy Enticer, Energy Edge and Energy Embracer will continue to work for Qatargas at its North Field.

In 2019, the drilling contactor won long-term contracts for Energy Enticer and Energy Edge from Qatar Petroleum, now called QatarEnergy, which owns Qatargas. The two Gusto MSC CJ-50 rigs were built by Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS) in China.

The Energy Edge is capable of working in water depths of up to 400 feet and drilling to depths of 30,000 feet. The rig was ordered by Northern Offshore in 2014.

In January 2020, Northern Offshore announced a contract award from QP for the GustoMSC CJ46 jack-up unit Energy Embracer. This rig was delivered from SWS in December 2018.

Energy Enticer started drilling at the Qatargas-operated North Field offshore Qatar in October 2020 the first of the three jack-ups to begin a long-term contract with the state-owned operator.

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Each of the rigs was awarded a firm four-year charter, plus extension options.

Northern Offshore is the drilling contractor for Chinas Shandong Marine Group.

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Northern Offshore wins Middle East drilling extension - Upstream Online

Vineyard Wind announced a program to test deploying an innovative bubble curtain to help reduce noise pollution during offshore wind foundation installation. The test will be run alongside ThayerMahan, which specializes in seabed surveys, acoustic mitigation and monitoring.

Bubble curtains are used to minimize the noise created by monopile installation. Using perforated hoses, condensed air is shot into the water in a ring around the monopile to form bubbles.

Vineyard Wind expects to use the bubble curtains to construct nations first commercial-scale offshore wind project off the coast of Marthas Vineyard. The installation will occur from the vessel Northstar Navigator, operating out of the Port of New Bedford.

The deal will mark the first time a U.S.-based company provided a bubble curtain system for offshore wind.

Our agreement with ThayerMahan ensures that for the first time, a US-based company will perform the service of providing a bubble curtain mitigation system for an offshore wind project, said Vineyard Wind CEO Klaus S. Moeller. We believe this is the first step of getting US firms experience in this new industry and sets the stage for rapid expansion in the coming years, particularly in our hometown of New Bedford.

As part of the operation, ThayerMahan will move its headquarters to New Bedford.

Vineyard Winds Industry Accelerator Fund will provide $5 million in funding for the operation, given by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center.

We are thrilled to see ThayerMahan bring its innovative solutions and acoustic mitigation operations base to New Bedford, and we commend them for their commitment to building a local workforce. This is yet another first for Massachusetts offshore wind industry and cements our growing leadership, said MassCEC CEO Jennifer Daloisio. MassCEC is proud to support Vineyard Winds Industry Accelerator Fund, which is catalyzing local innovation and job creation in the Commonwealths growing offshore wind industry.

Located 15 miles off the coast of Massachusetts, the Vineyard Wind 1 project will consist of 62 wind turbines generating 800 megawatts of electricity annually. The project is projected to create energy for 400,000 homes and businesses while removing 1.6 million metric tons of carbon emissions per year.

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Vineyard Wind Turns to Bubbles to Reduce Noise from Offshore ... - gCaptain

A Dublin-based company with a modular floating offshore wind turbine design believes its design checks one of the most important boxes the deep-sea wind industry has yet to solve: Affordability.

Rather than reducing the height of their turbines, building a wider, more stable base or trying to develop an entirely new method for capturing wind energy, Gazelle Wind Power opted to look under the surface to make buoyancy and flexibility changes.

While it still has to be anchored to the seafloor, Gazelle's design places the anchor cables on a trio of articulated arms that help the platform move with the motion of the ocean. To ensure the turbine tower itself stays stationary, a counterweight hangs from the center of the platform; Gazelle claims this will reduce the turbine's pitch to less than five degrees, which the company said will greatly reduce wear and tear on the tower.

A demonstration image of Gazelle's design in action - Click to enlarge

Despite those design changes, the result is a turbine base that Gazelle reckons is smaller, lighter and 30 percent cheaper to deploy compared to traditional semi-submersible designs, it said. Speaking to IEEE Spectrum recently, Gazelle CTO Jason Wormald claimed the counterbalanced turbine was designed from the ground up, so to speak, for the offshore wind industry.

"Most of Gazelle's competitors utilize legacy solutions from the oil and gas industry," Wormald said. That means many other platform designs "require large quantities of steel, have inefficient mooring systems that negatively impact the seabed and marine environments, and require specialized vessels, cranes, and infrastructure to assemble and transport," Wormald told the Spectrum.

Gazelle's design has yet to be fielded - it's working on a pilot project in Portugal with renewable energy firm WAM Horizon, whose Chairman also serves as a non-executive director at Gazelle - but if test results scale well it could mean every 1GW of third-generation Gazelle towers deployed would use 71kt less steel, preventing around 100kt of carbon dioxide emissions, the company claims.

Gazelle also touts its modular design, which it said doesn't require any specialized equipment, like cranes or custom-built launch vessels, as another way in which it reduces environmental impacts.

Moving wind turbines offshore, where wind is plentiful and unobstructed, is quickly becoming a popular alternative to plopping them down in, say, the farm fields and flatlands of middle America. Unfortunately, around 60 percent of US wind energy capability is trapped past the 200-foot (61 meter) mark, where ocean depths are typically too great to accommodate fixed-bottom wind turbines in a cost effective manner.

Late last year the Biden administration said it wanted to drive down the costs of offshore wind turbines to capture some of that 60 percent, with a goal of deploying 15GW of floating offshore wind by 2035, enough to power five million homes. The White House said it wants to reduce the cost of offshore floating wind turbines by 70 percent; Gazelle's not quite there yet, but 30 percent is a start.

Unfortunately for the company, the Department of Energy FLOWIN Prize is only for companies "incorporated in and maintain(ing) a primary place of business" in the US.

We have asked the Irish wind energy company about its plans and if it intends to compete for the DoE funds and will update this story if we hear back.

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Offshore wind power redesign key to adoption, says Irish firm - The Register

The Formosa 2 offshore wind farm in Taiwan was inaugurated today, 16 May, at the Waipu Fishing Port in Miaoli after being fully commissioned.

Located between 4 and 10 kilometres off the coast of Zhunan Township, Miaoli County, the 376 MW Formosa 2 offshore wind farm will generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of approximately 380,000 households.

All the projects 47 Siemens Gamesa 8 MW wind turbines were installed by 31 January and were connected to the grid in March. The offshore wind farm generated electricity at its full capacity for the first time last month and has now been officially inaugurated after all testing work has been completed.

According to its developers, Formosa 2s inauguration marks a significant milestone as the first Round 2 offshore wind farm and the first to be completed after the pandemic in Taiwan.

Formosa 2 is a joint development project by JERA (49 per cent), Macquarie Asset Managements Green Investment Group (26 per cent) with support from its portfolio company Corio Generation, and Synera Renewable Energy (25 per cent).

This accomplishment reflects the steadfast commitment, persistence, and courage of the project team, partners, and stakeholders who have persevered through the challenges of the past few years, said Yukio Kani, Global CEO from JERA.

Mark Dooley, Global Head of Macquarie Asset Managements Green Investment Group (GIG), said: We are delighted to deliver two out of three commercial scale operational offshore wind farms in Taiwan, marking another important milestone in Taiwans green energy transition.

Lucas Lin, Chairman of Synera Renewable Energy, said: Formosa 2 is the second offshore wind project we participated in and delivered in Taiwan. With strong support from Stonepeak, we have fully taken our responsibilities as a local developer and played a critical role in pushing forward the project. This hard-won achievement demonstrates our firm commitment to Taiwans energy transition and once again strengthens our leading position in the offshore wind market in Asia.

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Formosa 2 Goes Into Full Operation | Offshore Wind - Offshore WIND

Offshore accommodation company CBED has won a contract with rsted to provide its services for offshore wind farms Gode Wind 3 and Borkum Riffgrund 3 in Germany.

After completing the current project on DanTysk and Sandbank offshore wind farms, CBED will move on to join the commissioning of two new offshore wind farms, Gode Wind 3 and Borkum Riffgrund 3, in 2024.

With this new commissioning project with rsted, CBED secures full activity from Q1 until end of Q4 in 2024 for its walk-to-work service operation vessel, Wind Innovation.

The contract starts in direct continuation of the current DanTysk and Sandbank contract, expected to be completed in Q4 2023. The value of the contract was not disclosed.

The Gode Wind 3 offshore wind farm is expected to be fully commissioned by end of 2024, with Borkum Riffgrund 3 following in early 2025.

Daniel Alon, General Manager, CBED: "We are glad to once again be working with rsted, this time on a combined project. With her 80 single cabins and option of 105 quests in total, Wind Innovation stands out in the market, and we look forward to welcome new guests living comfortably on board our vessel and using our walk-to-work gangway to get directly to work on the wind turbines.

"During the project, the offshore operations will also benefit from Wind Innovations adjustable pedestal gangway, allowing the flexibility of connecting to transition pieces of different heights across the two involved wind farms.

"Wind Innovation can operate as low as 11,95 m (LAT) from the lowest operation level up to 26,45 m (HAT) from the highest operating level."

Both Gode Wind 3 (242 MW) and Borkum Riffgrund 3 (900 MW) offshore wind farms are located in the German North Sea, close to the existing offshore wind farms Gode Wind 1 and 2 and Borkum Riffgrund 1 and 2.

The two offshore wind farms will consist of 107 wind turbines in total, with 24 for Gode Wind 3 and the remaining 83 wind turbines for the Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm.

With its 900 MW, Borkum Riffgrund will be Germany's largest offshore wind farm to date, and combined, the two wind farms will provide electricity to well over one million homes.

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CBED's Vessel to Support Work on rsted's New Offshore Wind Farm Projects in Germany - Offshore Engineer

Brisbane-headquartered Orchid Energy has announced that it is in the early stages of investigating the potential for a multi-gigawatt portfolio of fixed and floating offshore wind projects off Queensland, Australia.

Orchid Energys plans are focused on three priority projects suitable for the deployment of large-scale offshore wind projects two projects off the coast of Gladstone which could have up to 6 GW of capacity and a 4 GW floating wind project located approximately 30 kilometres from shore off southeast Queensland with good proximity to the Port of Brisbane.

Clint Purkiss, Chief Executive Officer of Orchid Energy said that the company has been working for the past 18 months to identify appropriate sites to host quality offshore wind projects and contribute to Queenslands energy transformation journey.

While Queensland is yet to be nominated as a region suitable for offshore wind development, Orchid Energy said it believes offshore wind is a feasible option for balancing the spread of onshore clean energy projects and offering a robust means of contributing to the Queensland Governments target to deliver 22 GW of new renewable capacity by 2035.

Purkiss added, that these large-scale offshore wind projects will also bring long-term economic and social value for Queensland through industry stimulation, regional growth, and ongoing jobs in the clean energy sector.

These projects will also add to Queenslands planned $62 billion in renewable energy investments and stimulate the development of new, profitable and resilient supply chains when you account for the phenomenal volume of materials, components and skills required to deploy such large scale technology at sea, Orchid Energys CEO said.

According to the press release, the company is currently working through detailed technical and environmental analysis of potential project constraints and design options to ensure projects coexist with existing marine users and environments, including the Great Barrier Reef.

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Orchid Energy Unveils 10 GW Offshore Wind Plans in Queensland ... - Offshore WIND

Dutch-German transmission system operator TenneT has signed multi-year framework agreements with offshore installation firms Allseas and Heerema Marine Contractors for transport and installation of at least fourteen 2-gigawatt (2GW) offshore platforms.

The fourteen 2GW converter stations will be installed in the Dutch and German parts of the North Sea.

The framework agreement covers at least twenty-eight slots until 2031; fourteen slots for transport and installation of a jacket and fourteen slots for transport and installation of a topside.

Heerema will deploy the Semi-Submersible Crane Vessel (SSCV) Sleipniras well as an owned floatover barge; Allseas will use its single-lift installation vessel Pioneering Spirit for the installation of the jackets and topsides.

Sleipnir has previously installed the Hollandse Kust Alpha and Beta jackets for TenneT in the Dutch North Sea.

Both vessels have been used several times in recent years to install jackets and topsides for TenneT in the Dutch and German North Sea.

Heerema has been awarded about 60% of the available slots, while Allseas has been awarded approximately 40% of the slots.

Slots for future projects after 2031 can also be added to the awarded contracts. The awarded slots are not linked to specific 2 GW projects. The HVDC suppliers building the jackets and topsides for TenneT (Hitachi Energy/Petrofac, GE/Sembcorp, GE/McDermott and Siemens/Dragados) can choose from the suppliers whereby Heerema and Allseas can install both jackets and topsides.

Boskalis will act as a subcontractor to Allseas, building one or two new transport vessels specifically for the 2GW Program that will meet the most stringent future legislation standards on sustainability and emissions.

Tim Meyerjrgens, COO at TenneT says, "With this agreement we secure global marine transport and the heaviest offshore installation capacity in the market for our HVDC partners while expanding transport capacity in the market. We are proud to have signed this framework agreements with these Dutch and Swiss-Dutch suppliers. These European partners once again prove that they are global market leaders in offshore transport and installation. They have the equipment to carry out projects of such magnitude safely and successfully."

Pieter Heerema, Allseas President, said: We are delighted that Allseas superior single-lift technology has been selected to help TenneT realise its ambitious 2GW Program, and play a key role in Europes energy transition.

Pioneering Spirit TenneT

"When my father, Edward Heerema, devised the single-lift concept in 1987, no one could have envisioned it would be deployed for a landmark offshore energy project of such strategic importance four decades later. Pioneering Spirits unique transport and installation capability has been used to great effect to deliver critical assets for offshore wind developments across Europe. The ships large lift capacity and high workability ensure that the installations can be safely performed all year round, creating maximum flexibility in the vast and complex building schedules. We look forward to strengthening our relationship with TenneT and getting started on this prestigious project.

Jeroen van Oosten, Heeremas Chief Commercial Officer said: We are proud to be selected to work alongside TenneT to deliver clean energy for the Netherlands and Germany. The award of this framework agreement is an important showcase of the benefits of forming trust-based partnerships between clients and contractors. To ensure clean energy demands are met, there should be a continued focus on collaborative, forward-looking agreements that recognize the need to secure transport and installation capacity.

Ostend Declaration

Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway and the United Kingdom signed the Ostend Declaration at the North Sea Energy Summit in April 2023.

In this declaration, the countries agreed to jointly install at least 120 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power capacity by 2030. TenneT, Europe's leading offshore transmission system operator, will account for about one-third of this volume, or 40 GW of grid connections. To this end, TenneT is building offshore grid connection systems in Germany and the Netherlands with a total capacity of 20 GW each.

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TenneT Taps Allseas, Heerema to Install 14 Massive Offshore Converter Stations - Offshore Engineer

PublishedMay 16, 2023 9:13 PM by The Maritime Executive

Accelerating, enabling and supporting the rapid development of offshore wind will be front of mind at the First Nor-Shipping Offshore Wind Conference, with a diverse array of industry leaders centre stage to discuss the latest demands, innovations and segment trends. Taking place on 7 June at the main Nor-Shipping exhibition facilities in Lillestrm, Norway, the breakthrough initiative is a collaboration between Nor-Shipping and Norwegian Energy Partners (NORWEP).

Powerful participants

The half day conference, running between 12.00 and 16.00, will mix networking and knowledge sharing with a lively mix of presentations and panel discussions.

Participants span a broad spectrum of offshore wind development, support and service, including names such as: Stuart Fitzgerald, CEO, Seaway7; Mikkel Gleerup, CEO, Cadeler; Alexandra Koefoed, CEO, Fred. Olsen Windcarrier; Kent Vinkel, CEO, Windspider; Hugo Bouvy, Managing Director, DEME Offshore; Tone Lunde Bakker, CEO, Export Finance Norway; and many more.

The need for such an event, says Jon Dugstad, Director Wind, NORWEP, is crystal clear.

Pathways to success

He comments: The ambition, and opportunity, with offshore wind is growing all the time, but we need to secure the pathways for translating that into business, and energy, reality. This conference will address key issues and trends, engaging global business leaders and experts to assess the optimal ways to unlock value.

Well be looking at the crucial role maritime has to play in enabling developments highlighting critical offshore competencies and assets, such as those offered by NORWEP members assessing how to get the supply chain primed for a rapidly progressing industry. The latest technologies, sustainability issues, capacity questions and the drives for efficiency will all be under the spotlight. We believe theres something for everyone with an interest in this essential renewable energy sector.

Crucial role

Key sessions will invite the experts to consider how maritime can meet the demands of a segment that wants to go higher, further, faster, more!, trailblazing solutions for installation and operations, how to minimise the industrys carbon footprint, and the role Norway has to play in supporting the industry, in Europe and beyond. Clarksons and Global Centres of Excellence; Ocean Technologies and Maritime Cleantech are also collaborating on the initiative.

[By: Nor-Shipping]

Offshore wind has a crucial role to play in delivering secure, sustainable energy supplies to power a greener tomorrow, comments Sidsel Norvik, Director, Nor-Shipping. But to achieve our aims we need to foster the right relationships and really understand the complex, evolving demands of a variety of stakeholder groups. Thats why working in #PartnerShip, the main theme of Nor-Shipping 2023, is central to success here.

With this is mind were delighted to join with NORWEP on this first-of-its-kind endeavour, cementing strong links between our traditional maritime audience and our growing base of energy partners and supporters. The high quality line-up of speakers, and the fact that tickets are selling out so fast, is a testimony to just how strongly people support this drive. Its going to be a fantastic event, for a segment with truly outstanding potential. See you there!

Save the dates

Nor-Shipping runs from 6-9 June, bringing the global maritime and ocean industries together at venues across Oslo and Lillestrm.

In addition to 22,000m2 of exhibition space, a host of social, networking and knowledge sharing activities are planned, including the Ocean Leadership Conference, the Blue Talks, the first Offshore Aquaculture Conferences, the 2ndMaritime Hydrogen Conference, The Nor-Shipping BBQ, the Fourth International Autonomy Summit, the [emailprotected] social scene, and much more.

For the full Nor-Shipping 2023 programme, and all ticket details, please seewww.nor-shipping.com.

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.

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Nor-Shipping & Norwegian Energy Partners 1st Offshore Wind ... - The Maritime Executive

SCHENECTADY General Electric and two major unions have reached a labor peace agreement for facilities the company wants to build for offshore wind equipment manufacturing at the Port of Coeymans.

Should GE power subsidiaries get enough orders, they plan to build turbine blades and nacelles the housings that contain electric generating equipment for wind power projects off the Long Island coast. New York state is promoting the use of wind power as one of the ways to cut greenhouse gases in power generation. The state has set out ambitious goals for developing green, carbon-free energy and offshore wind is key to that plan.

GE says the manufacturing plants could create 870 jobs.

The company said it reached an agreement with the IUE-CWA unions in which GE would remain neutral during the labor organizing process for the plants.

Approximately 825 of GE Vernovas U.S. employees including about 700 in New York are represented by contracts with the IUE-CWA.

The agreement aims to ensure smooth, uninterrupted operations of the manufacturing facilities.

As a leader in the U.S. wind industry and the company that introduced the first 12MW + offshore wind turbine, GE Vernova is pleased to have worked with the IUE-CWA on this labor peace agreement associated with our proposal to build two, state-of-the-art offshore wind factories in New York, officials from GE and the unions said in a joint statement.

Our organizations have a long history of working together and share common goals of addressing climate change and creating offshore wind manufacturing opportunities in New York state, GE Vernova President Scott Strazik added.

Vernova is the name of the power portion of GE that will be split off into a separate company early next year. The conglomerate recently decided to split its aviation and power generation units into two separate firms.

This forward-looking, historic agreement reflects the commitment of both IUE-CWA members and GE to addressing climate change and ensuring that green jobs are good jobs. IUE-CWA President Carl Kennebrew said.

In January, GE submitted a plan to New York to construct the two new manufacturing facilities in New York if it wins a sufficient volume of orders from customers in the states ongoing solicitation for up to 4.6 gigawatts of offshore wind.

In addition to 870 direct jobs, around 1,000 construction jobs and 1,400 other indirect jobs would be generated by the projects.

Additionally, GEs proposal includes a program called Pathways to Wind that will give historically underserved communities across the Capital Region exposure, education, and training in the offshore wind industry.

IUE-CWA is the industrial division of the Communications Workers of America. It represents 40,000 workers.

President Joe Biden issued a statement Monday saying his "'Investing in America' agenda has already brought in more than $470 billion in private sector manufacturing investments, and has helped make America a leader in clean energy for years ahead. We are creating good-paying jobs that Americans can raise a family on, and the opportunity to join a union will help ensure hardworking Americans continue to get paid what they deserve, and boost our local economies."

Biden commended IUE-CWA and General Electrict "for working toward a future where unions help build the middle class again, and the middle class rebuilds America."

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GE, unions reach deal on offshore wind plant at Port of Coeymans - Times Union