Statoil has announced that it will build the world’s first floating wind farm called The Hywind pilot park offshore Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
The Norwegian operator in gas, oil and new energy, Statoil, will install a 30-MW wind turbine farm on floating structures at Buchan Deep, 25km offshore Peterhead, harnessing Scottish wind resources to provide renewable energy to the mainland.
Continue reading “Scotland chosen as the location for the first floating wind farm”
HR Wallingford is working with DONG Energy as part of a project to develop the next-generation of wind turbine foundations. Work underway in HR Wallingford’s Fast Flow Facility will help inform the design of a novel suction bucket foundation, and will ultimately lead to more cost effective seabed foundation solutions for the renewable energy industry.
As offshore wind farms move into ever deeper water, developers are exploring alternatives to the traditional monopile foundation in order to reduce costs and keep the technology competitive within the energy marketplace. HR Wallingford is helping DONG Energy refine the design of one such alternative – the suction bucket foundation – as part of a research project to determine how these structures interact with, and impact upon, the hydrodynamic conditions and the seabed.
Continue reading “Next generation wind turbine foundations being researched”
Van Oord’s offshore installation vessel Aeolus has successfully installed Gemini wind project’s first monopile. The offshore wind project, one of the largest in the world, will consist of 150 monopiles. The project is expected to be fully operational by 2017 generating clean and renewable energy for 1.5 million people in the Netherlands.
Gemini is being built in the North Sea. The project consists of two areas of 34 km2 and is located 85 km off the coast of Groningen. Each monopile is designed for its specific location in the wind project. Depending on water depth, they vary in length from 59 to 73 m. The monopiles have a diameter of 7 m, and a wall thickness of 7 to 11 cm. During the three-year construction period, a wide range of equipment including Van Oord’s specialized offshore wind vessels will be deployed. An estimated workforce of 500 will be involved on the project.
Continue reading “Van Oord installs Gemini wind project’s first monopile”
Classification society RINA is launching revised rules for offshore cranes and new standards for cranes that will be used for trans-shipment of bulk cargoes at sea.
RINA’s revised rules for offshore cranes have been based on European Standard EN 13852, which takes a different approach to commonly used offshore crane standards, said to allow for a more structured approach to offshore crane certification.
“RINA believes that there is a need in the offshore industry for a clear standard for floating cranes and cranes built onto OSVs which is based on European requirements,” said Dino Cervetto, director, technical services, RINA Services.
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In a shocking study by Helm Operations, some 50% of crews working on offshore support vessels are willing to compromise safety rather than say ‘no’ to clients or senior management, while nearly 80% believe commercial pressures could influence the safety of their working practices. These findings and more come from a new report on workboat and OSV safety commissioned by operations and maintenance management software specialist Helm Operations.
The chilling findings, released to coincide with this week’s International Maritime Organization Maritime Safety Committee meeting, come from a new report on workboat and OSV safety commissioned by operations and maintenance management software specialist Helm Operations.
Continue reading “Helm Operations report pinpoints workboat and OSV safety shortcomings”
The Danish shipping company, Esvagt, is now introducing the first SOV vessels especially constructed for servicing windfarms.
The first vessel, “ESVAGT FROUDE”, went on contract on Wednesday February 18th, while her sister ship, “ESVAGT FARADAY” is contracted to start at the beginning of April. In both cases they will work as windfarm service vessels for Siemens Wind Power.
The German energy company has provisionally chartered “ESVAGT FROUDE” for a five year contract to service the field and transport personnel during the constructing and operation of the offshore windfarm Baltic 2 and the “ESVAGT FARADAY” for similar jobs for the Butendiek project in the northern part of the Germany provisionally for a 10 year contract.
Continue reading “Two new windfarm service vessels enter service with Esvagt”
The new Lloyd’s Register energy guidance notes, launched at ONS 2014, are designed to assist designers, owners and operators of oil and gas equipment on how to assess fire loadings on an installation, and how to protect people and equipment against different fire scenarios.
“Protection against fires on board vessels and installations is critical to a safe operating environment,” said Joar Dalheim, VP Technology, Consultancy Services of Lloyd’s Register.
“Our Guidance Notes provide a significant reference document to guide oil and gas designers, owners and operators on different risk-based methodologies to establish what could be at risk, ranging from simple fire risk issues to highly technical and complex fire risk situations.”
Continue reading “Lloyd’s Register issues new energy guidance notes”
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