Swedish developer of twin offshore wind turbine technology Hexicon has partnered with Australia-based engineering giant Worley for FEED, Engineering Procurement Fabrication (EPF), and installation management of Hexicon's technology demonstrator project TwinWay, in Norway.
As reported back in May this year, Hexicon said it would develop a demonstrator project - TwinWay- for floating wind power at Metcentre’s deepwater area off Norway’s coast.
With TwinWay, a pilot to commercialize new offshore floating wind technology, Hexicon and Metcentre want to show proof of floating wind power in deep waters as it enables the generation of large amounts of renewable energy meanwhile allowing higher average wind speed and lower visual impact than both onshore and bottom fixed offshore wind power.
As part of the agreement with Worley, after the successful completion of FEED, Worley will assume full responsibility for the fabrication phase, which is planned to begin during the fall next year. TwinWay is the first project where Hexicon’s patented design will be deployed at full scale.
TwinWay is a proof of concept to verify and commercialize Hexicon’s foundation technology for floating wind, TwinWind. During the initial phase of the project, Hexicon achieved a statement of feasibility and certification report by DNV.
Worley will use its Rosenberg facility in Norway for the fabrication scope of the project. Through the partnership, Worley will take over the project-specific engineering, planning, and fabrication phase, including the management of the installation, following the successful completion of FEED.
Marcus Thor, CEO of Hexicon said: “After years of development, numerical analyses, and physical model testing, we are now putting the final pieces in place to deploy the full-scale version of our patented design. This is naturally an important milestone to prove the benefits of our technology and accelerate the journey towards commercialization. Worley is a well-renowned tier one contractor in the renewable sector, and I’m thrilled that their deep competence and infrastructure will be engaged as TwinWind becomes a reality.”
Chris Cowland, Vice President Global Offshore Wind of Worley, said: “We’re excited to be part of such a groundbreaking project as TwinWay, in an industry that is forecasted to grow exponentially over decades to come. The learnings and collaboration through this project will not only provide crucial evidence of the specific and highly promising technology, but also why wind power in deep water areas will be an important part of the global transition to renewable energy.”