Convincing Operating Results: Project Term of The Floatgen Floating Offshore Turbine Extended by a Further 5 Years
La Ciotat, France - French floating offshore company BW Ideol will extend the operation of its Floatgen prototype floating offshore wind turbine for another 5 years.
Based on the results and the current condition of the float and turbine, the plant, which was originally designed for a service life of five years, can continue to be operated for a further five years without any major maintenance work, according to BW Ideol. According to BW Ideol, this extension is clear proof of the robustness of the design.
The announcement comes after Floatgen surpassed the 30 GWh electricity production mark. In addition, the milestone achieved proves that floating offshore wind turbines are a practical and tangible solution to support electricity supply, according to BW Ideol.
The extension of turbine operation enables BW Ideol to continue research and development projects. In the environmental field, for example, the Velella project aims to optimize the economic and environmental performance of the BW Ideol float while conducting a life cycle analysis. The Piaff & Co project will also collect data to identify potentially affected species and their interactions with the wind turbine.
"We are proud to announce the extension of our Floatgen pilot, which, after enduring several major storms over the past 5 years, including a record wave height of 12.9 meters during the Ciaran storm, is still perfectly capable of operating for an additional 5 years without the need for major maintenance work. Owning a full-scale unit like Floatgen is truly a must-have to validate and refine our technology and to conduct research projects. And this is exactly what we intend to do for the next few years," said BW Ideol Managing Director Paul de la Guérivière.
Source: IWR Online, 01 Feb 2024
