Category Archives: Offshore

Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Market describes an in-depth evaluation and Covid19 Outbreak study on the present and future state of the Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market across the globe, including valuable facts and figures. Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Market provides information regarding the emerging opportunities in the market & the market drivers, trends & upcoming technologies that will boost these growth trends. The report provides a comprehensive overview including Definitions, Scope, Application, Production and CAGR (%) Comparison, Segmentation by Type, Share, Revenue Status and Outlook, Capacity, Consumption, Market Drivers, Production Status and Outlook and Opportunities, Export, Import, Emerging Markets/Countries Growth Rate. The report presents a 360-degree overview of the competitive landscape of the industries.

Top Key players of Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Market Covered in the Report:Helix ESGOceaneering International Inc.DOF ASASaab ABTechnipFMC PLCDeepOcean Group, Inc.Teledyne Technologies IncorporationSubsea 7FugroSapura Energy Berhad

In Chapter 11 and 13.3, on the basis of types, the Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) market from 2015 to 2026 is primarily split into:Oil & Gas IndustryScientific ResearchMilitary & DefenseOthers

In Chapter 12 and 13.4, on the basis of applications, the Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) market from 2015 to 2026 covers:Drilling SupportConstruction SupportInspection, Repair and Maintenance (IRM)Others

Further, the report also takes into account the impact of the novel COVID-19 pandemic on the Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market and offers a clear assessment of the projected market fluctuations during the forecast period.

In addition, the global Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market report has studied sales, suppliers, production, variable cost, advanced technology, types, sales, and market share for the period 2021 to 2027. The basic information, and also the profiles, specifications of products, applications, market performance along with business summary, are offered. The report offers a detailed overview of the aggressive analysis, industry trend, market share and size, market forecast, market demand, market price, and sales on performing players.

Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Market Region Coverage (Regional Production, Demand & Forecast by Countries etc.):

Key Highlights from Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Market Study:

Assembling Analysis The Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) report is presently broke down concerning different types and applications. The Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market gives a section featuring the assembling procedure examination approved by means of essential data gathered through Industry specialists and Key authorities of profiled organizations.

Competition Analysis Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Leading players have been considered relying upon their organization profile, item portfolio, limit, item/benefit value, deals, and cost/benefit.

Demand and Supply and Effectiveness Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) report moreover gives support, Production, Consumption and (Export and Import).

Strategic Points Covered in TOC:

Chapter 1: Introduction, market driving force product scope, market risk, market overview, and market opportunities of the global Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market.

Chapter 2: Evaluating the leading manufacturers of the global Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market which consists of its revenue, sales, and price of the products.

Chapter 3: Displaying the competitive nature among key manufacturers, with market share, revenue, and sales.

Chapter 4: Presenting global Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) market by regions, market share and with revenue and sales for the projected period.

Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9: To evaluate the market by segments, by countries and by manufacturers with revenue share and sales by key countries in these various regions.

About Us:Qurate Business Intelligence delivers unique market research solutions to its customers and help them to get equipped with refined information and market insights derived from reports. We are committed to providing best business services and easy processes to get the same. Qurate Business Intelligence considers themselves as strategic partners of their customers and always shows the keen level of interest to deliver quality.

Contact Us:Web: http://www.qurateresearch.comE-mail: [emailprotected]Ph: US +13393375221, IN +919881074592

Read more from the original source:

Offshore Remote Operated Vehicle (Rov) Market Size 2021, Analytical Overview, Future Trends, Growth Factors, Historical Analysis, and Forecast to 2026...

OCEAN CITY, NJ During last night's council meeting, Mayor Jay Gillian discussed potential benefits he's seeking for Ocean City from rsted's proposed wind farm off New Jersey's southern coast.

rsted's Ocean Wind project would construct 99 wind turbines about 15 miles off the coast from Atlantic City to Cape May. The wind farm has drawn opposition from several southern coastal communities, citing environmental concern for marine life and its impact on fishing and tourism industries.

"I have listened to an overwhelming number of citizens who have expressed concerns about the project and I have done my own due diligence," Gillian said. "There is no way it can be constructed without making a direct impact on Ocean City."

In the proposed project, the wind farm would connect to the land-based electric grids at the decommissioned B.L. England Generating Station in Marmora. rsted representatives have proposed running the underground electric cables through Ocean City to reach Marmora.

Gillian said Ocean Wind has reached out to the administration to discuss potential host community benefits for Ocean City.

During last night's council meeting, Gillian said he plans to push for the following:

"I understand that federal and state decision makers have the power to approve this project without Ocean City's consent, but I intend to do everything in my power to advocate for Ocean City's best interests," Gillian said. "I believe in the objectives of clean energy, but I know these can be advanced while also addressing the points I've just listed."

Gillian reminded residents about rsted's open house on Nov. 6 at the Ocean City Music Pier. rsted representatives will be on hand to field questions on various aspects of the project in a public fashion.

Registration will begin at 9:30 a.m., with the program beginning at 10 a.m. and running until approximately 1 p.m.

Visit link:

Ocean City Mayor Addresses Offshore Wind Farm Concerns - Ocean City, NJ Patch

A North East engineering company has launched plans to expand into the offshore wind sector as it explores new markets.

Turnmill manufactures fixtures and machine components predominantly for automotive, pharmaceuticals, motorsport and construction businesses, while also helping companies and individuals to develop concepts and prototypes.

Now the firm, based at Washington Business Centre, Sunderland, has plans to widen its customer base with a focus on the offshore wind industry sectors, with aims to work with manufacturers and supply chain companies, to support their product developments and production programmes.

Read more: go here for more stories on education and skills

Its drive for growth also includes increasing its annual turnover from 250,000 to 2.5m, and owning its own factory by 2025.

The company currently employs eight, which it plans to increase in the coming months across technical and administrative roles.

Turnmill which has become a member of NOF, the UK business development organisation for the energy sector has also recently secured a grant from Scale Up North East to support the acquisition of additional production equipment.

Andrew Howe, Turnmill co-founder and operations director, said: When Turnmill was founded three years ago its customers were primarily in the automotive sector. Since then, we have diversified to embrace other sectors and we intend to continue this strategy by branching out to attract custom from the offshore wind industry.

The sector is growing at a pace and the North East is becoming a real focal point for offshore wind activity, which presents our business with the opportunity to achieve our strategic target of becoming the regions jig and fixture manufacturer of choice.

NOFs expertise and extensive network will help us gain a foothold in the sector be helping to raise our profile and make valuable connections within the industry and across the supply chain.

Paul Livingstone, NOFs head of business development and membership, said: There are a wealth of opportunities in the offshore wind sector for innovative and collaborative companies Turnmill has the knowledge, skills, ability to innovate and manufacturing capabilities that are transferable to capitalise on what is happening in the sector.

Its track record demonstrates that it is adept at broadening its business base into new marketplaces and NOF will work with Turnmill, as we do all our members, to provide support, industry insight and connections that will help them achieve its ambition for growth.

You can get all the day's business news from the North East sent to your email inbox each morning.

By signing up here, we will deliver the headlines from companies in Tyne and Wear, Northumberland, County Durham and Teesside straight to your email inbox every morning.

Our specialist team of business writers will bring you stories from a range of sectors, reporting on companies large and small.

View original post here:

Washington's Turnmill Engineering unveil plans to expand into offshore wind supply chain - Business Live

Saturday saw brisk activity at the Southern Naval Command here, with 38 personnel - including eight women, engaged in readying six Indian Naval Sailing Vessels (INSVs) for the 700-km Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav Offshore Sailing Regatta to Goa from Sunday.

They include women personnel who circumnavigated the globe in one such vessel in an all-women group in 2017 and have fixed their eyes on doing it solo in a year's time. Powered by wind, they intend to cover the distance in less than five days. The regatta under the aegis of Indian Naval Sailing Association (INSA), is aimed at fostering the spirit of adventure and ocean sailing.

Among the eight women in the group are Lt Cdr Varthika Joshi and Lt Cdr Dilna K, a native of Kozhikode, who would navigate 40-feet and 56-feet long sailing vessels that were being readied for the regatta. "The women in each vessel would have to partake in all tasks that men do, including hoisting the sails and repairing electrical parts or the engine, if the need arose," Lt Cdr Dilna said.

Among the six vessels, Mhadei has done solo circumnavigation 'Sagar Parikrama' with Capt Dilip Donde in 2010 and Cdr Abhilash Tomy in 2013. She has also participated in the Cape Town to Rio de Janeiro races in 2011, 2014 & 2017. Tarini has done circumnavigation of the globe 'Navika Sagar Parikrama' in 2017 with all women officers crew.

All the vessels were made in India, at yards in Goa and Pondicherry. Their engine would be switched on only for emergency, for which a limited quantity of fuel will be available in each vessel.

Another participant Cdr Deepak Raj spoke of how he has so far covered over 15,000 kms in sailing vessels, including a Cape Town-Rio-Kochi journey in 2016. "Circumnavigating the globe solo would be a challenging task, what with the participant not having any human contact for about eight months."

Indian Navy's guard ships and aircraft would patrol the seas to ensure that there is no threat of harm by pirates, said his colleague Cdr K R Binoy. "The personnel - two of whom represented the country in sailing events in Asian Games, would brave the elements, especially the wind and the currents. They would even make optimal use of them for their speedy cruise, while maintaining alert for ships or fishing vessels they would encounter en route. With no fan, AC and having to cook one's food, each participant would have to do multiple tasks. All this would make the regatta a platform to identify trainers," he added.

The participating INSVs include Mhadei, Tarini, Bulbul, Neelkanth, Kadalpura and Hariyal. R.Adm TVN Prasanna, Command Staff Officer (Training) of SNC and Capt Manish Sain, Captain of INSA were among those who interacted with the navigators on Saturday.

More here:

Navy's Offshore Sailing Regatta to set the stage for global solo circumnavigation - The Hindu

Edinburgh Airport has teamed up with Danish utility Orsted to set out plans to decarbonise the Scottish airport and produce emission-free aviation fuel, in part through the use of green hydrogen produced from offshore wind.

The two parties have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to map out steps to reduce the airports emissions and meet its net zero target by 2040.

The partnership is inspired by the ambitious Green Fuels for Denmark project, also led by Orsted, in which the utility, Copenhagen Airport, SAS airline, Maersk and others are cooperating to create a renewable hydrogen hub that plans to eventually produce e-fuels from 1.3GW of electrolyser capacity fed by offshore wind.

We have made huge advances in technology and we want to continue to innovate and ensure aviations future is one that is decarbonised and contributes positively to our economy and Scotlands net zero ambitions, said Gordon Gewar, chief executive at Edinburgh Airport.

Although aviation emissions derive in the main from aircraft in flight, we can play our part within our estate and fuel for aircraft at Edinburgh and we are confident this exciting partnership will help us on our way to a sustainable travel future and see Edinburgh Airport helping to develop and support sustainable fuels and their use.

Although still at an early stage, the partnership aims at both cutting Edinburgh Airports energy emissions, those of aircraft filling aviation fuel there, as well as decarbonising vehicles used to operate the airport.

Article continues below the advert

Edinburgh Airport said when fully scaled up, the cooperation with Orsted will see power sourced from offshore wind and renewable hydrogen produce 250,000 tons of e-kerosine and e-methanol per year as part of its effort to reach net zero by 2040.

Scotland, which itself has a 2045 net zero target, currently is leasing out large chunks off its coast for offshore wind in the ScotWind round, in which Orsted has entered bids alone or with partners that would provide more than 8.5GW of renewable power.

Whilst we have made huge strides in decarbonising the way we generate electricity, the next stage is to use that renewable electricity to decarbonise industry and transport, Orsteds UK head Duncan Clark said.

This will involve renewable energy companies collaborating with forward-looking companies such as Edinburgh Airport.

Renewable hydrogen is key to decarbonising heavy transport and air-travel and look forward to working together on this exciting technology.

Continued here:

'Ensure aviation's future': Edinburgh airport teams up with Orsted for offshore wind-to-hydrogen plan | Recharge - Recharge

No industry holds the promise of radical transformation across the Irish economy like the offshore wind sector.

ust as the oil and gas sector once held out the promise of energy self-sufficiency from beneath the waves, supporters and promoters of the growing new sector now argue that the copious winds on Irish waters hold the promise to a bright, sustainable future for the Irish economy.

The Government has upped its ambitious 2030 target for energy from renewable sources to 80pc and offshore wind is expected to do the heavy lifting with at least five gigawatts of power.

In Ireland there has been a lot of talk about the potential of offshore wind to transform Irelands energy sector, but there has been a nagging fear that it would remain just that: talk. But so confident is Vanessa OConnell the new head of State-backed Inis Offshore Wind in the potential of the sector here that she has moved back from the UK after 13 years working in senior roles with some of the biggest offshore wind developers in the world.

She believes that after a long period of inaction, the sector here has reached a turning point.

I think we are moving away from the talking phase to the real phase, she told the Sunday Independent.

Inis, which is backed by both the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) and AIB, as well as other international investors, through the renewable energy focused Temporis Aurora Fund, is hoping to develop an initial one gigawatt of wind capacity. It has two prospective sites on the east coast, with other sites located on the south and west coasts.

The initial focus is on the two east coast projects, both of which have the potential to deliver wind farms outputting 500mw apiece, enough combined to power 800,000 homes.

OConnell believes if people see a real benefit within their communities it will mean greater support for the technology along the coastline.

Obviously its about generating electrons and getting us to net zero, said OConnell. But how can we directly benefit the people of Ireland in a more meaningful way that changes their daily lives? And thats through jobs. Its about getting the supply chain set up here. Its about developing turbine technician apprenticeship programmes for example. These are the things we should be focusing on. Im very keen onbringing people along.

Achieving the potential of the sector requires legislation and a framework to build out the projects that are in the pipeline of numerous developers, including Inis.

Theres still quite a lot of work to get that implemented but once we get through that were going to start really seeing projects come to fruition. The typical capital investment for a one gigawatt project is between 2bn to 3bn, she says.

Thats a huge amount of capital that we need to leverage. But our focus now is to get these projects up and running and once you do there is a lot of capital in the market because a lot of investors are looking to go green. So our job now is to make these projects viable by working with the communities and other stakeholders.

Ultimately, as the projects progress, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, insurance companies and other large, long-term investors would be expected to become involved.

But to get to this stage requires a whole series of hurdles to be overcome, and plenty of people both in and outside the sector are sceptical that Ireland has the ability to make it happen, not least because of Irelands ongoing poor record of delivering major infrastructure projects in a timely and cost effective manner.

Everything from the vagaries of the planning system, to difficulties around foreshore licences, to the slow pace of grid connections are all problems that have ensured that offshore wind success has been difficult to achieve here to date.

But OConnell insists there has been progress and there is cause for optimism.

For example, the Government has launched a consultation with stakeholders as to how the first auction under its Offshore Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (ORESS1) might operate, the first step in paving the way for a growing number of prospective large-scale wind farms.

There have been some challenges, she says. But Im incredibly optimistic about where we are going. That is my nature.

Another key step forward, she says, has been the publication by the Government earlier this year of a new marine spatial plan, the first for Irelands waters, followed by the publication of the crucial Marine Area Planning Bill, which it has promised will pass into law by the end of the year.

This will allow for the establishment of Mara, a new authority to oversee the regulation and the consenting process for offshore wind farms. Without that the industry cannot progress. But implemented correctly it can do what the National Roads Authority did for the motorway building programme 20 years ago. The coming months will tell a lot in this regard.

Of course, offshore wind carries long-term promise for Ireland and will not solve the short-term pinch point in which the grid finds itself facing. Nor is it an immediate solution in the debate over the ever growing number of energy hungry data centres that are being built here. And, as a developer with prospective sites right around the coast, OConnell is not prepared to rush the process with Inis.

Were very committed to going through the right process with stakeholders and with regard to consenting to make sure that we build sustainable projects that work in the long-term, she says. We could be looking at getting our two east coast projects generating at the back end of the 2020s, maybe 2028 or 2029, and we are pushing to make that happen.

In the near term there is obviously a challenge that needs to be overcome, but where Ireland should be focusing is on the long-term. The Government currently has a target for 2030 but I think we would like to see more ambition and lets go beyond 2030. We have the potential for 30 gigawatts of floating offshore winds off the coast in the Atlantic. Lets start talking about that, focusing on how we can actually deliver and get the infrastructure that we need so were not in the challenging position that we are facing over over the next number of years.

But for this optimism to mean anything OConnell says it is imperative the Government sticks to its timelines and keeps early momentum in the sector going.

It is also about other key regulatory and stakeholder bodies, such as Eirgrid and An Bord Pleanla, says OConnell. They need to focus on resourcing their teams.

She welcomes a recent announcement from An Bord Pleanla that it is going to have a dedicated team to deal with renewable energy projects. Another key part of the jigsaw due this year is the promised publication by Eirgrid of its vision for the national grid. She also believes it is crucial that as a country Ireland begins to build the supply chain here that will be required to ensure offshore wind farms get built out of Irish ports rather than out of the UK.

In the UK we saw the publication of an offshore wind sector deal, which is effectively an industrialisation strategy for offshore wind. It is a handshake between the industry and the government around delivering offshore wind.

Effectively, the industry there has committed to a 60pc aspirational target for using local content in building projects and the government in return has committed to fully supporting the industry. It is something that OConnell believes could really push the industry forward here and help it to create jobs and a new industrial sector around the coastline, were it to be replicated here.

We have to look at where we are now and then look at what we can achieve and what industries we can realistically get here in the short-term and in the long-term. Ultimately, it would be amazing if we could have a manufacturing base here for turbines. But I think we need to be realistic about where we are in terms of supply chain. Lets first think about the operational and maintenance vessels, for example. Can we build them in Ireland? We as an industry can do so much but it does go back to the likes of the IDA and Enterprise Ireland all coming together on this. We cant underestimate the challenge. Ive worked in the UK and they are still working hard at building an industry that has been there for the last 20 years. We need to start now.

Places such as Aberdeen already have an advantage because many of the skills in the oil and gas industry welding, for exampleare transferable into offshore wind and are readily available. Ireland needs to begin building this base from scratch, she says. Competing for labour with the skills-starved construction sector as it attempts to build 30,000 homes a year will be a challenge, for example.

Can it be done? The answer to that will be apparent long before the first new offshore wind farms appear on the horizon.

If the opportunity is missed, future generations will have one more reason to judge this one harshly.

View original post here:

Offshore wind is moving from the talking to the doing phase - Independent.ie

Though absent from the Pandora Papers investigation are some of wealthiest Americans in the world, the investigation linked part-time Aspen resident and homeowner Robert Brockman to offshore accounts he used as part of an alleged $2 billion tax scheme.

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists on Sunday began publishing findings from its Pandora Papers probe into the names connected to offshore concerns used to hide wealth. The report, according to the nonprofit organization, is considered to be the largest investigation in journalism history.

The net result was a cache of nearly 12 million documents connecting the names of foreign leaders, billionaires and celebrities to shell companies they used to conceal their money, positioning them to pay lower taxes and potentially launder money.

Brockman is being prosecuted by the federal government for tax fraud and evasion, and in September the IRS placed tax liens combining for $1.4 billion on three properties he owns in Aspen.

Also a resident of Houston, Brockman, 80, has pleaded not guilty to 39 federal charges that include wire fraud and money laundering as part of a tax scheme the federal government has said is the largest amount in U.S. history.

Brockman is the founder and former CEO of Dayton, Ohio-based Reynolds and Reynolds Co., which sells business software to auto dealerships. He is accused of hiding income he made on his investments in private equity funds from the IRS.

While Brockman is identified in the Pandora Papers, they didnt include household names of such billionaires Jeff Bezos, who owns a home in the Aspen area. Other household names who have frequented or owned property in the Aspen area Brits Elton John and Ringo Starr, for example surfaced in the Pandora Papers.

Yet the United States wealthiest citizens including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who owns The Washington Post; Tesla founder Elon Musk; and Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates do not appear in the documents. Financial experts said billionaires in the United States tend to pay such low tax rates that they have less incentive to seek offshore havens, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

The ICIJ, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, shared the documents with 150 media partners including the Post.

The investigation was based upon the most expansive leak of tax haven files in history, the ICIJ reported, and reveal secret offshore holdings of more than 130 billionaires from 45 countries including 46 Russian oligarchs. In 2021, according to Forbes, 100 of the billionaires had a collective fortune of more than $600 billion. Other clients include bankers, big political donors, arms dealers, international criminals, pop stars, spy chiefs and sporting giants.

While the ICIJs Pandora Papers database is not available to the public at this time, other investigations of similar nature the nonprofit conducted are, with one connecting three local addresses to the officers of offshore accounts. Merely being named, however, does not reflect the commission of a crime, the ICIJ said.

There are legitimate uses for offshore companies and trusts, the ICIJ noted in a disclaimer to its database of prior investigations called the Panama Papers, the Offshore Leaks, the Bahamas Leaks and the Paradise Papers. We do not intend to suggest or imply that any people, companies or other entities included in the ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database have broken the law or otherwise acted improperly.

The Paradise Papers investigations, the results of which came out in November 2017, unearthed three Pitkin County addresses one is located in Snowmass Village and two in Aspen. All three addresses are listed as the residences of officers of separate corporate entities established in Bermuda.

The Snowmass Village home was listed as the residence of the officer of a Bermuda foundation that existed from September 2007 to February 2008, according data from the Paradise Papers.

One of the Aspen properties was listed as a residential address for director and president of a hedge fund that incorporated in Bermuda in October 2004 and dissolved in March 2006.

The second Aspen property was listed as the residential address for a shareholder and the director and chairman of a corporation set up in Bermuda in September 2009. That corporation still exists.

Elsewhere in Carbondale, an office serves as the headquarters for the registered agent of a shareholder tied to a Bermuda account, a detail also revealed in the Paradise Papers.

The Aspen moniker is used by 87 offshore entities identified in the Panama and Paradise papers, and the Bahamas and Offshore leaks investigations, yet just one those entities officers who are named individually could be linked to an Aspen address.

That entity, Aspen Mountain Valley Inc., was established in January 2004 in the Bahamas by two individuals who rented property together in Aspen for one year, based on local property records.

Other entities the Almonds of Aspen Ltd., Aspen Cat Fund Ltd., Aspen High Value Inc., for example showed no affiliation, however loose, with the Colorado ski town.

rcarroll@aspentimes.com

See the rest here:

Aspen connections unearthed in offshore money investigations - Sky Hi News

By Mark Goalen, director of offshore engineering, Houlder

With offshore floating wind as a proven commercial reality, the challenges associated with the industry are now focused on delivering at scale, but there are still key innovation issues to be resolved across the industry.

The global floating offshore wind industry is expected to reach 126 MW by the end of 2021 and to grow to 70 GW by 2040. As well as powering electricity grids around the world, floating wind will help decarbonize offshore oil and gas production and play a critical role in green hydrogen production.

Developers, insurers, financers and all stakeholders serious about making the significant advances needed to upscale floating offshore wind capacity to meet these expectations will be interested in reducing project risk, improving installation time and building robust supply chains that will function throughout their assets lifecycle.

Operational efficiency and technology options will continue to evolve over time. The challenge for developers is to remain open to innovation and look for continued improvement without impeding progress.

Credit: ORE-Catapult

Choosing the best foundation technology is critical to delivering the best levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for floating offshore wind projects. The decision should be based on assessment of available port infrastructure and supply chains as much as water depth and environmental conditions.

As much as economies of scale based on consistency and repeatability are appealing, the choice of foundation type should not be made before site analysis. The physical attributes of foundations will influence where they can be fabricated and the ease with which they can be towed and moored, and detailed motion response should be compared on a case-by-case basis for any specific location. A foundation perfectly suited to the Mediterranean may not be viable in the Pacific.

There are currently four main types to choose from, with multiple options for each type and still several more innovative concepts under development. Firstly, spar buoys are cylindrical in shape and very stable given their deep draft with ballast creating a low center of gravity. They require a deep water area for fabrication and also for maintenance if towed to shore. They can be made from steel or concrete, and are conventionally catenary moored.

The other option is semi-submersible platforms which consist of typically three connected vertical columns. Considered suitable for most locations given that relatively shallow water required at fabrication site, stable for tow during installation and O&M, their biggest disadvantage is being prone to heave motion which is difficult to prevent without increased fabrication complexity. Semi-submersibles are generally fabricated from steel and conventionally catenary moored.

Tension leg platforms typically have a central column and arms connected to tensioned tendons. They can be assembled onshore or in a dry dock, but they can be harder to keep stable during transport and installation than other concepts. Their biggest advantage is that the taught mooring lines significantly reduce the length of mooring lines for deep water locations in comparison to a catenary moored structure.

Damping pool structures have a square barge structure which contains a damping pool that has been tuned to reduce the foundation motion. They can be made from concrete or steel a factor that can increase flexibility of the fabrication location.

Credit: BW Ideol, V. Joncheray

Understanding the installation methodology and defining the developments and operations and maintenance strategy up front is also critical to determining which solutions are feasible and where the challenges lie. Initial findings from UK Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult (ORE) for a select set of scenarios suggest that it is cheaper to tow turbines to shore where crane operations are simpler and there is ready access to onshore services and personnel.

However, offshore wind developments can be remote from good port facilities, and there are risks associated with disconnecting and reconnecting the units and towing them to shore. As the Floating Wind Joint Industry Project recently concluded in its Phase III report, one of the main challenges for the tow-to-port option is the safe detachment and wet storage of cables and mooring connections. Conversely, for in-situ maintenance, there are challenges with the limitations of heavy lift vessels: many of the existing heavy lift vessels are unable to lift to the required hub height with the required reach for larger turbines.

Planning and logistics are clearly important and should be modelled in more depth than is possible in just a project schedule. A dynamic model that compares options and provides results based on what is important to the developer (cost, risk, carbon emission or schedule) would be a useful tool. The same model could include contingency factors such as installation weather limitations, unexpected schedule delays and their knock-on consequences. The output from the model will not only provide what is the best option for a site-specific development but will also establish the available budget to develop the O&M vessels that would be required to conduct repairs on location, and the bespoke tooling that will need to be designed to make that happen.

Several types of floating foundations have now been proven in full-scale trials, and installation at commercial scale has been achieved, as evidenced by the completion of the worlds largest floating offshore wind farm to date, the 48-MW Kincardine Offshore Wind in Scotland.

Experience so far has demonstrated that some of the most developed technologies have encountered issues or have features that increase fabrication complexity. These will likely be phased out as the designs evolve, and its important that developers recognize this in their financial models. The floating industry cant simply expect to capitalize on the experience of the much more mature fixed wind industry.

Foundation designs continue to evolve as new innovations resolve earlier technical difficulties, and new technologies continue to open up possibilities for reducing commercial and technical risk. The ORE Catapult report Floating Offshore Wind: Cost Reduction Pathways to Subsidy Free released this year notes that advances in fabrication, such as robotic welding complete with machine learning, will have a significant impact on project cost due to increased production efficiency.

A more integrated design interface between anchors, mooring system and substructure could speed up installation and major repair operations.

Additionally, autonomous robots could be employed to de-risk inspection and maintenance tasks. Indeed, last year, a six-legged robot successfully scaled a vertical blade on an offshore demonstration turbine.

Other exciting technology developments such as self-erecting nacelles and less conventional floating structure designs will continue to increase what is possible, while minimizing the cost of the vessels and tools required to handle the equipment.

The project developers toolbox continues to expand, but making the right decisions requires in-depth analysis of a multitude of influencing factors a serious undertaking in terms of research but one that has the potential to pay dividends.

Development and design cycles naturally overlap. As warned in the ORE Catapult cost reduction report, turbine technology development could outpace the supporting technology required to install it. The need for new larger cranes and vessels could hinder project timelines, and ultimately the cost of fabricating and installing these larger components may outweigh the economic benefits of larger turbines.

Perhaps an even more fundamental, industry-wide issue than the already visible and articulated challenges is what remains unknown as a consequence of the risk profile of such complex projects. There are many interfaces and interactions required, that must work in harmony, not isolation, and some developers are opting for EPIC contracts to avoid fronting and managing the risks associated with multi-contract management. This is stifling opportunities for SME growth and development and therefore stifling innovation.

The EPIC approach reduces developers flexibility and potential to deliver cost reductions through innovative processes, new logistics chains, and dynamic contractual relationships. Restricting these opportunities to reduce costs and mitigate risks will hinder on-going decision making and could seriously slow growth potential across the industry.

Innovation can take the industry from proven commercial-scale to full utility-scale developments capable of achieving the required LCOE at the volume of units required to hit or better the installed power targets. There is no shortage of companies prepared to invest in the development required. One barrier to this could be the investment required to develop the port infrastructure to fabricate the foundations is vast, and there needs to be confidence there will be sufficient volume of foundations to cover that investment. That approach lends itself to consistency and repeatability in fabrication which is difficult to achieve with so many drastically different options in existence and still under development. Regardless in every aspect of this embryonic industry, innovation will be crucial if offshore floating wind is to play a full part in future offshore energy provision.

Mark Goalen is a MEng Naval Architect and Chartered Engineer with 17 years of experience in project engineering and management, subsea construction, vessel modification, consultancy work, design engineering and tendering. He commenced his career in a large multi-national installation contractor, prior to specializing in technical consultancy. He combines the wide-ranging experience to understand project risks, restraints and demands with use of technical knowledge to guide decision making. Today, Mark Goalen is director of offshore engineering forHoulder.

More here:

Innovation in floating wind will be crucial to the future of offshore energy - Windpower Engineering

rsted and Eversource have signed a USD 86 million (around EUR 74 million) contract with Riggs Distler & Company for the supply of wind turbine foundations for the Sunrise Wind offshore wind project in New York.

This represents the largest, single offshore wind supply chain contract award in New York State and positions the Port of Coeymans, where the foundations will be produced, to be among the first ports in the United States to be mobilised for the construction of foundation components for an offshore wind farm by US workers, according to a press release from rsted.

Under the agreement, Riggs Distler & Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Centuri Group, will serve as the general contractor to build the prefabricated foundation components at the Port. Once complete, the components will be shipped down the Hudson River and out to the Sunrise Wind offshore wind farm site.

The work is set to bring construction and steel manufacturing work to New York companies located in the Capital Region and Western New York, creating 230 jobs. It is anticipated 115 local union workers will be based at the Port of Coeymans to construct hundreds of large-scale components for Sunrise Winds wind turbine foundations, including internal and external platforms, railings, steel ladders, cages, and other key parts.

New York company Ljungstrm will manufacture the steel components and deliver them to the Port of Coeymans, which will create at least 100 jobs in Western New York while the construction at the Port will be covered by a Project Labor Agreement. In accordance with the developers commitment, rsted and Eversource will negotiate a Project Labor Agreement with the Greater Capital Region Building and Construction Trades Council, covering all construction work performed at the port in connection with the advanced components by Riggs Distler.

Additionally, many New York opportunities will emerge for local construction support, transportation, facilities, and material supply to support the advanced components scope for Sunrise Wind. These include concrete supply, site support services, facilities, lighting, and equipment.

rsted and Eversource, as part of Sunrise Wind, will also launch a USD 1 million workforce training initiative under the strategic leadership of the Center for Economic Growth. This will support activities related to the projects scope, help raise job opportunity awareness and ensure area residents will have access to offshore wind economic opportunities, including efforts to prioritise skills training and hiring within disadvantaged communities.

The Sunrise Wind project entered federal permitting process in August, when the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced its plan to start an environmental reviewfor the proposed offshore wind farm.

The project, developed by rstedand Eversource, is proposed to be built in a lease area in federal waters approximately 31 miles (around 50 kilometres) east of Montauk, New York; 19 miles (around 30 kilometres) south of Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts; and 17 miles (around 27 kilometres) offshore Block Island, Rhode Island.

Sunrise Wind is planned to have up to 122 wind turbines and an installed capacity of between 880 MW and 1,300 MW, which could power around 600,000 households with clean electricity.

The large-scale offshore wind farm would help New York meet its clean energy goal of achieving 70 per cent electricity from renewable sources by 2030, as well as the US goal of having 30 GW of offshore wind installed by that time.

New York State is set to offer its next offshore wind solicitation in early 2022, when it will also target significant port infrastructure and supply chain investment to further maximise the long-term economic benefits of the offshore wind industry.

See the original post:

New York Company Secures USD 86 Million Offshore Wind Foundation Deal with rsted and Eversource - Offshore WIND

BRASILIA, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Brazil's Economy Minister Paulo Guedes will provide prosecutors and the Supreme Court with voluntary evidence showing he broke no laws or had any conflicts of interest in regards to offshore investments, his lawyers said on Tuesday.

The statement comes after Guedes was named in reports by the consortium of news outlets covering the so-called "Pandora Papers" data dump, which triggered a preliminary investigation by prosecutors in Brazil.

The initial inquiry by the office of Brazil's prosecutor general (PGR) does not indicate any crime has been committed.

Guedes' lawyers said the minister had removed himself from the management of the offshore investment vehicle Dreadnoughts in 2018, relinquishing any participation in the financial decisions of the company. They added that Guedes had not moved any money abroad since he joined the government.

The offshore investment was first reported by Brazilian magazine Piaui and news website El Pais Brasil, which were part of a media consortium sifting through more than 11.9 million records, amounting to about 2.94 terabytes of data.

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), a Washington, D.C.-based network of reporters and media organizations, said the files were linked to about 35 current and former national leaders, and more than 330 politicians and public officials in 91 countries and territories.

It did not say how the files were obtained, and Reuters could not independently verify the allegations or documents detailed by the consortium.

Reporting by Maria Carolina Marcell; writing by Stephen Eisenhammer; Editing by Stephen Coates

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

More here:

Brazil's Guedes to show prosecutors he did nothing wrong regarding offshore investment - Reuters