Swedish developer Hexicon is to acquire the Wave Hub offshore renewable energy test site in Cornwall, south-west England.
The deal, which is expected to complete at the end of May, will see Hexicon through its UK subsidiary, TwinHub Limited, acquire the assets of Wave Hub Limited from local authority, Cornwall Council, for an undisclosed sum.
The Wave Hub site lies 16 km north of St Ives and Carbis Bay, where world leaders will gather for the G7 summit from 11 June.
Hexicon intends to develop the site for a 30-40MW floating offshore wind project and deploy its twin-turbine floating foundation.
Power could be delivered by 2025 and Hexicon is working with Bechtel, an engineering, construction, and project management outfit.
The team will establish how the technology could be brought to market, and explore the roles that local suppliers could play during investigative works, in fabrication and assembly, mooring, and installations, as well as serving the long-term needs of the floating offshore wind industry.
The deal does not include Wave Hub Development Services.
Cornwall Council will retain this as a wholly-owned business, to provide support to the TwinHub project and other Celtic Sea deployments.
Steve Jermy, Chair of Wave Hub Development Services and a director of the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), said: “This is a milestone agreement with Hexicon to bring their innovative floating wind technology to Cornwall.
“It will be the first such project in the Celtic Sea and kick-start our regional ambition to see our 3GW installed by 2030, which could create thousands of jobs and generate hundreds of millions of pounds for local economies.”
Wave Hub Ltd’s assets include a 30MW grid-connection and agreement with Western Power Distribution (expandable to 40MW), a four-way seabed hub 16 km offshore and four inter array cables, an onshore substation and related land and a consent over eight square km of sea with water depths 51-57 metres.
Use of the site by Twin Hub for floating offshore wind technologies is ultimately subject to the agreement of The Crown Estate, with whom lease discussions are ongoing.