Italian oil and gas contractor Saipem has announced it will construct a floating offshore wind farm in Saudi Arabia.
The firm said it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Abu Dhabi investment firm Plambeck Emirates to develop and construct the 500 megawatt (MW) project.
Saipem confirmed the initial phases of the project will be undertaken by Plambeck Saudi, a Plambeck subsidiary firm located in Riyadh.
The Italian firm said it will start operations after finalising the financial agreements at the end of the planning phase.
Once an agreement is in place, Saipem will undertake the engineering, design, construction and installation of the entire project.
Francesco Balestrino, Renewables and Green Tech product manager at Saipem, said: “We believe that the wind market in Saudi Arabia can be supported by innovative solutions for the construction of offshore wind farms, such as the Saipem technology Hexafloat, with an accelerated programme and reduced costs.
“Initiating the new market in Saudi Arabia is an important opportunity to be seized and we are ready with Plambeck for this new challenge.”
In 2017, Saipem facilitated Equinor’s Hywind floating offshore wind project by lifting the turbines and towers and installing them on floating foundations at a yard in Norway, before their transportation to Scottish waters.
Norbert Plambeck, shareholder of Plambeck Emirates, added: “The development of the 500 MW floating offshore wind farm project is part of the new 5 GW “Wind Market” concept, which has been proposed to Saudi Arabia.
“We are very proud to have a global solution provider with international experience like Saipem, with whom we can carry the next development phases of the project.
“Furthermore, the implementation of the project with Saipem, a solid international group, is already technically assured.”
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