Three floating offshore wind projects totalling 300MW, which have been identified through The Crown Estate’s test and demonstration leasing opportunity, have been given the green light to progress to the next stage of assessment.
The projects, each located in the Celtic Sea, have satisfied the initial application criteria set out by The Crown Estate, demonstrating technical competence, delivery capability and technological innovation.
The next stage will see the projects subject to plan-level Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) to assess possible impacts on protected marine habitats.
Subject to the outcome of this assessment, the applicants could then be granted seabed agreements for lease.
The projects are the 100MW Whitecross, located off the coast of Devon and Cornwall, which is being developed by the Cobra and Flotation Energy joint venture Offshore Wind Ltd.
The other two projects are the Llyr 1 and 2, each 100MW, located south of Pembroke on the Welsh coast.
They are being brought forward by Floventis Energy, a newly established joint venture between SBM Offshore and Cierco.
The three projects would each test new foundation and mooring technologies, using new designs, materials and construction approaches.
The Crown Estate marine portfolio managing director Huub den Rooijen (pictured) said: “Innovative projects like these represent a vital step towards the UK’s ambitions to develop floating wind at a commercial scale.
“Not only do they help support the commercialisation of the market while bringing down costs, they are key to testing new designs, materials and construction methods while creating new opportunities for the regional supply chain.
“This sort of new technology will have an important role to play as the UK transitions to Net Zero, helping unlock new energy capacity, while potentially helping to reduce the impact on the marine environment.”
SBM Offshore New Energies and Services managing director Severine Baudic said: “We are very proud of this first key milestone achieved with Cierco through our joint venture Floventis Energy.
“Our partnership will benefit from the combined expertise of Cierco in project development and SBM Offshore in floating offshore projects.
“Together, we have the ambition to stimulate and accelerate the floating wind market while building track-record and local presence.”
Cierco chairman Mikael Jakobsson said: “We are very honoured to reach this first milestone for Floventis Energy, which materializes the strong partnership we established with SBM Offshore with the objective to develop responsible and sustainable floating wind projects maximising benefits to the local communities.”
A spokesperson for Offshore Wind Ltd said: “We are excited to be moving forward with White Cross, our floating wind test & demonstration project off the coast of Devon and Cornwall.
“It gives us a great opportunity to test new floating foundations and to prepare for commercial deployment of the technology across the UK.”