French oil giant Total has agreed to buy an 80 per cent stake in a floating offshore project from Simply Blue Energy.
The 96MW windfarm named Erebus will be built near Pembroke Dock in Wales in waters up to 70 metres deep in the Celtic Sea.
The two companies have formed joint venture named Blue Gem Wind to develop floating windfarms in the area and recently submitted an application to the Crown Estate for their first demonstration project. Erebus will make use of Principle Power’s WindFloat foundations.
“With its entry into floating offshore wind, Total confirms its ambition to contribute to the development of renewable energy worldwide,” said Total chairman and chief executive Patrick Pouyanné.
“Floating offshore wind is an extremely promising and technical segment where Total brings its extensive expertise in offshore operations and maintenance. Total has the appropriate skills to meet the technological and financial requirements that determine the success of future floating offshore developments.”
The world’s first floating offshore windfarm was officially opened in Scotland in October 2017. A study released by the Crown Estate in 2018 found that floating wind capacity in the UK to could reach up to 20GW by the middle of the current century.