The construction of the world’s largest floating wind farm Kincardine, in the UK, is now complete, marking the start of the long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed in 2018 between Kincardine Offshore Windfarm Ltd. (KOWL’s) joint venture and Statkraft.
The floating wind farm features Principle Power-developed Windfloat semi-submersible foundations on which five MHI Vestas V164-9.5 MW offshore wind turbines are installed.
Statkraft will purchase all electrical output from the floating wind project with a guaranteed minimum price per MWh until 2029.
Jaime Altolaguirre, KOWL’s Managing Director from Cobra Group (major shareholder in KOWL): "We entered into this agreement with Statkraft with confidence, knowing that selecting them and selecting this particular PPA structure, provided us with clarity on our long-term income. It also gave us a partner that we were willing to work with on a long-term basis.
"We wanted a counterparty who had offshore wind experience in the UK and a track record with UK law firms, funders and investors. Statkraft, as Europe's largest supplier of renewable energy, stood out due to their own large-scale investment and operational experience in this region. This solid experience allowed them to provide bankable and competitive commercial terms and to agree them quickly."
John Puddephatt, Manager Long Term PPA Origination at Statkraft says: "We are proud to be one of the partners that helped bring this highly innovative project to completion. This is the first floating project that Statkraft has been involved in and we expect more to follow; a key technology that could help countries around the world achieve their renewable energy targets. PPAs such as these play a key role in providing project owners with financial predictability and security, therefore, helping enable long-term investment and financing.
"Statkraft has a firm and longstanding interest in Scotland, as it is one of the most important countries in the challenge to achieve global carbon neutrality, due to its favorable conditions for renewable energy. We are pleased to take Scotland and the wider UK a step closer to achieving their net-zero carbon targets."
According to Statkraft, the KOWL development will provide over 200,000 MWh per year to the national grid, enough to power over 50,000 homes.
Worth noting, the Kincardine floating wind farm will remain the world's largest floating wind farm for another year or so.
Across the North Sea in Norway, Equinor is building its 88MW Hywind Tampen floating wind project, which is scheduled to go online in the third quarter of 2022.
While the Kincardine floating wind farm will at that point lose the 'world's largest' title, it will still boast the most powerful turbines installed on a floating wind farm.
Namely, Equinor's Hywind Tampen will feature 11 Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD turbines, compared to Kincardine wind farm's MHI Vestas V164-9.5 MW turbines.
Kincardine Floating Offshore Wind
About Kincardine Offshore Windfarm
Developer: Kincardine Offshore Windfarm, Ltd (KOWL). Majority owned by the Cobra Group
EPC Contractor: Cobra Wind International Limited (CWIL)
Turbines: 5 x V164-9.525 MW, 1x V80-2MW
Blade tip height: 190 meters
Foundation: WindFloat (floating, semi-submersible type)
Project Capacity: 50 MW
Location: Aberdeen, Scotland
Distance from Shore: 15 km
Water Depth: 60-80 meters
Nominal Voltage: 33 kV
Number of homes powered annually: More than 50,000