Classification body DNV has approved a floating wind power concept, which could help oil and gas companies to cut their carbon emissions from gas and oil production by up to 70 percent.
Many of the traditional oil majors, such as energy company and lubricant maker Shell, have made long-term commitments to reduce their carbon emissions and even become net-zero businesses by 2050, but they also want to continue oil and gas production in the medium term, so any efforts to decarbonise these operations will help them balance these two goals.
The WindGrid concept has been developed by Odfjell Oceanwind as a network of mobile offshore wind units (MOWUs). Each MOWU has its own integrated converter and storage, and when knitted together in a microgrid, it will provide enough power during peak wind periods to allow oil and gas platforms to turn off their gas turbine generators. Depending on weather conditions, this could cut about 60 to 70 percent of annual carbon emissions.
Per Lund, the CEO of Odfjell Oceanwind, said that approval from DNV showed that MOWUs were an attractive option for oil and gas producers looking to cut their carbon emissions, adding:
“The flexibility of the MOWUs, combined with emission cuts exceeding the industry’s 2030 ambitions, means that the industry can deliver on the green shift faster and more cost effectively than any other alternative that exists today, including power from shore.”
Erik Henriksen of DNV Maritime said that floating wind power solutions like this could have a strong effect on the pace of the transition concerning energy.
