Norweigan energy firm, Equinor, has reported power production from the first turbine in the floating wind farm Hywind Tampen in the North Sea has started.
Power production started on Sunday and the energy generated was delivered to the Gullfaks A platform.
Owned by the Gullfaks and Snorre partners, the Hywind Tampen wind farm is expected to meet around 35% of the electricity demand of the two fields.
Equinor claims that the wind farm will cut CO2 emissions from the fields by about 200,000 tonnes per year.
Of the eleven turbines scheduled for the farm, seven are set to come on stream by the end of this year.
The remaining four turbines have been constructed and are set to be installed on the field during a weather window next year.
Geir Tungesvik, Equinor’s executive vice president for projects, drilling and procurement said: “I am proud that we have now started production at Hywind Tampen, Norway’s first and the world’s largest floating wind farm.
“This is a unique project, the first wind farm in the world powering producing oil and gas installations.
“The Norwegian content of the project is about 60 per cent.
“This shows that we, together with our partners and suppliers, are building a new industry on the shoulders of the oil and gas business utilizing the competencies we together have acquired over many decades.”
The Norweigan firm’s executive vice president for exploration and production in Norway, Kjetil Hove, added: “Hywind Tampen cuts emissions from the oil and gas industry and increases the gas export to Europe.
“This is an important contribution towards transforming the Norwegian continental shelf from an oil and gas province to a broad energy province.
“Just a few years ago, no one would have believed that offshore platforms could be powered by electricity from floating wind turbines. Well, now we have started.”
Recommended for you
