Blue Gem Wind appoints OWC to Valorous floating wind project
Blue Gem Wind, the joint venture between TotalEnergies and Simply Blue Group has appointed OWC as owner’s engineer for the pre-FEED of the Valorous floating offshore wind project located in the Celtic Sea.
OWC’s scope of work is to deliver owner’s engineering services for the pre-lease engineering and consenting scope for the Valorous floating offshore wind project. The intent of this scope of work is to complete the required work packages and deliverables necessary for the project to submit a successful lease application to The Crown Estate as part of the upcoming Celtic Sea leasing round and prepare the project for pre-FEED.
The contract is for a term of approximately one-and-a-half years, and the scope of work includes owners engineering and project development support to achieve the timely and successful lease application.
OWC, part of Oslo-listed ABL Group, will manage the project out of its headquarters in London, UK, but utilise its resources across the UK and Europe.
The Valorous project is a proposed early-commercial project, that follows the 100 MW demonstration project Erebus, which OWC has supported as owner’s engineer for over two years.
“We are delighted that we have been asked to expand and continue our support of Blue Gem Wind’s floating wind Celtic Sea ambitions. We successfully delivered the consent application for Erebus and we are looking forward to working on Valorous. It is a major steppingstone to 1GW commercial floating wind projects and a vital economic opportunity for the Southwest of the UK.”
Alan Smith, OWC’s Director of Major Projects
“We are pleased to continue the relationship with OWC and partners. Project design and development is a core skill of the UK supply chain, and we are delighted to award this contract to a UK business.”
David Groves, Commercial Manager, Blue Gem Wind
Valorous is located approximately 47 kilometres southwest of the Pembrokeshire coastline, with approximate water depths of 70 – 84 metres at the offshore array area and is estimated to feature up to 27 wind turbine generators (WTGs), as well as the associated floating platforms and mooring infrastructure and a single offshore substation.
Following the UK government announcement in October 2020, there is now a target to deliver a total of 5 GW of floating offshore wind energy by 2030. To meet this target, sites previously considered less desirable by fixed projects due to water depths are now of interest for development to the floating market.
In November 2021, The Crown Estate (TCE), recognising the substantial wind energy resources in the Celtic Sea as well as the need for industries to develop the capability and scale to successfully participate, announced their intentions to unlock up to 4GW of new floating wind capacity in the Celtic Sea by 2035.
The Crown Estate is therefore conducting an integrated spatial design and Plan-Level Habitats Regulations Assessment process ahead of a market tender to select sites, thereby reducing environmental risk and to give developers more certainty. It also works with others to support a co-ordinated grid solution, and stimulate investment in port infrastructure, thereby creating opportunities for economic development and mitigating impacts on communities onshore.
OWC is a specialist consultancy that helps develop and deliver offshore wind projects and investments for developers and investors in all global markets. The company offers project development services, owner’s engineering and technical due diligence to the offshore renewables sector.
Find out more about OWC’s service offering in Owner’s Engineering: