BW Ideol and Hitachi Energy are developing an universal floating offshore substation for both bottom-fixed and floating offshore wind farms starting at depths of 40 meters.
Based on BW Ideol’s patented and shallow-draft Damping Pool® concept, this floating offshore substation is engineered to operate in the world most extreme environments and to offer maximum modularity.
To minimize costs, this solution offers several advantages :
- installation of the topside onto the floater at quayside,
- testing and pre-commissioning at quayside
- installation without heavy-lift offshore operations.
Thanks to a time-tested and readily available supply chain, the solution can easily be serial produced while creating local jobs.
This universal and modular floating substation is expected to have a significant impact on the market of offshore substations and is market-ready for upcoming floating commercial tenders, in France and across the world. The market potential is huge, as 115 GW of new offshore capacity is expected to be installed around the globe by 2030.
