Scotland’s first minister Humza Yousaf unveiled the £9m National Floating Wind Innovation Centre (FLOWIC) in Aberdeen’s energy transition zone.
Delivered by Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult in collaboration with Energy Transition Zone (ETZ) Ltd, a private sector-led, not-for-profit company, and with funding from both the Scottish government and Innovate UK, FLOWIC has been designed to boost the development of floating offshore wind technology in the UK.
According to Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, floating offshore wind off the north coast of Scotland is not only a huge economic opportunity but will also contribute to decarbonising North Sea energy production.
ORE Catapult estimates that floating offshore wind has the potential to deliver over £43bn in UK gross value added (GVA) by 2050, and create more than 29,000 jobs.
ORE Catapult
The facility provides equipment for companies to develop and derisk technologies for floating offshore wind projects:
• A large-scale dynamic cable flex fatigue rig to test and validate the strength, performance and reliability of dynamic subsea cables.
• A large-scale anchor rig to test dynamic anchoring systems.
• A floating offshore wind scale motion simulator.
• A virtual reality studio to allow engineers to envisage scenarios and challenges likely to be faced in the buildout of future floating wind turbines.
Andrew Jamieson, chief executive of ORE Catapult, said: “This facility represents a groundbreaking step forward in the commercialisation of floating offshore wind – a sector that will be critical to meeting our net zero targets.
“When you look at the projected global market demand for floating wind technology over the coming years, the opportunity is eye-watering; dynamic cables alone will be a more than £2bn global market over the next decade. Here in the UK, we are well placed to play a leading role in that market by developing the supply chain to support the innovations that will bring this potential to life. Others are chasing the same prize though, so the time is right to make sure Scottish and UK companies are at the front of that race, and this facility is a key part of helping that happen.”
Humza Yousaf said: “We share a common objective to establish Scotland as a first mover in floating wind technology on an industrial scale and by seizing this advantage we can position Scotland among the world’s leaders in this groundbreaking industry.”
Source: E&T
