A trio of floating wind developers have received a major funding boost from Norway’s state enterprise for promoting energy transition.
Local firms Source Galileo and Odfjell Oceanwind, together with Japanese partner Kansai Electric Power (KEPCO) were awarded NOK 2 billion ($192mn) in capital funding from Norway’s Climate and Energy Fund via Enova to develop a floating wind project to offshore Hammerfest in the Barents Sea.
The project – GoliatVIND – was first proposed in April 2023 when Norwegian operator Var Energi said it was exploring further options towards electrifying one of its major assets. The stated intention was to send electricity to the mainland in a bid to boost renewable power generation in the northern Norwegian county of Finnmark.
Seven firms and consortia submitted applications as part of the agency’s competition to support small-scale floating wind projects, with the GoliatVIND scheme emerging as the frontrunner.
Plans would see the installation of five wind turbines capable of producing a combined 75 MW. The floating production unit is already electrified and the scheme would tie into existing infrastructure associated with the Goliat oil field, including a power cable that ties back to the shore.
Odfjell Oceanwind will provide its Deepsea Star foundations on which will be fitted five 15MW turbines, each with a height of 135-170 metres and a rotor diameter of 220-260 metres.
Under the terms of Enova’s funding, tenderers had to commit to a progress plan that would see the project commissioned within five years, though its backers hope it will be operational in 2027.
Enova director of technology and market development Astrid Lilliestråle noted: “Through the offshore wind competition, we see several positive effects. Several areas of expertise are developing good concepts, and such projects contribute to the early mobilization of a value chain for floating offshore wind.
“This increases the feasibility of developing offshore wind in Norway. Together with faster technology development towards cost-effective floating offshore wind, this facilitates the production of large amounts of renewable power.”
© EnovaCommenting on the grant, Source Galileo CEO Gunnar Birkeland, said: “Such support is absolutely crucial to lift these kinds of projects at this early stage, putting Norway on the map and creating increased opportunities for the Norwegian supply industry.”
The company recently developed technology for floating offshore wind that is qualified to cope with rough conditions in the Barents Sea, and said its solutions at GoliatVIND may also be applied elsewhere around the world.
Meanwhile, Per Lund, CEO of Odfjell Oceanwind said: “This grant is a breakthrough for Odfjell Oceanwind and our technologies and is an important step towards us demonstrating the Deepsea Star with 15MW turbines.”
“[The grant] also demonstrates the Government’s continued commitment to let Norwegian companies lead the way in the global floating offshore wind market,” Lund added.
KEPCO commitment
Japan’s KEPCO joined the project in December last year, with Birkeland noting at the time that the firm’s “operational expertise and financial strength will help us accelerate floating offshore wind in Norway.”
KEPCO’s transmission and distribution company is a global investor in offshore wind, and currently operates 19,000km of high voltage grids in Japan.
Three of its engineers and one commercial specialist have been seconded to Source Galileo’s head office in Haugesund to support the project.
The Japanese company is also involved in a joint venture in Spain with local firm Saitec Offshore Technologies and German energy giant RWE, which in August 2023 installed DemoSATH, a 2MW floating wind pilot located around 18km from the city of Bilbao.