TotalEnergies has announced a new pilot project to install a floating wind turbine to supply renewable electricity to the Culzean offshore platform in the North Sea.
The project is designed to test an approach to reducing carbon dioxide emissions from offshore oil and gas facilities.
The 3MW floating wind turbine will be positioned two kilometres west of the Culzean platform, located 220 kilometres off Scotland’s eastern coast.
Expected to be fully operational by the end of 2025, the turbine will supply around 20% of the platform’s power needs, helping to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.
The turbine will be installed on a modular, semi-submersible floater hull designed by Ocergy, allowing for quick assembly and cost efficiency.
Marie-Noelle Semeria, Chief Technology Officer at TotalEnergies, said: “This innovative pilot project aims at proving the concept of hybridization of power generation on an offshore facility, by integrating the generation of renewable electricity from a floating wind turbine with the existing power generation from gas turbines.
“It also aims at qualifying a promising floater design for the future of floating offshore wind.”
