
The world's largest floating offshore wind farm officially opened
The Hywind Tampen wind farm was opened 23 August by Crown Prince Haakon of Norway.
Read the news articleDid you know that Norwegian coastal areas offer some of the finest locations worldwide for developing offshore wind?
Equinor has been developing offshore industry in the North Sea for over 50 years, and we will draw on all of this experience as we seek to make offshore wind an important part of the energy transition and create new, sustainable jobs in Norway. Discover more below.
The Hywind Tampen wind farm was opened 23 August by Crown Prince Haakon of Norway.
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Floating offshore wind could offer great opportunities, as about 80 percent of the world’s offshore wind resources are located in areas where the water is too deep to place turbines on the seabed.
As we continue to build the world’s largest bottom-fixed offshore wind farm, Dogger Bank, close cooperation between us, our partners and our suppliers in Norway, Thailand and the UK are of the utmost importance.
At Equinor, we work with 8,000 suppliers spread across the nation and outside Norway's borders. Without them, there wouldn’t be an Equinor.
Equinor is already the world's most experienced company in floating offshore wind, and operates almost half of all floating wind power in the world. We have more than 20 years' experience with offshore wind and supply more than 1 million households in Europe with renewable power. We are developing some of the world's largest wind farms in Europe and the USA. Now we want to use this expertise at home.
Wind farms and projects outside NorwayThe world's first renewable power source for offshore oil and gas operations.
A large-scale offshore wind farm in the southern North Sea that will supply renewable energy to Europe.
A large-scale floating offshore wind farm at Utsira Nord can be Norway's next project for industrialising floating offshore wind.
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Read more about Equinor’s activities in offshore wind:
In the North Sea, there are persistent and strong winds, particularly from the north-west. These conditions are ideal for wind power as they provide plenty of power and predictable production. Parts of the Norwegian coast also have sea depths shallow enough to permit bottom-fixed turbines.
Over the past 50 years, the Norwegian supplier industry has built up unique expertise and is a world leader in technology related to maritime operations and the operation of offshore installations, including underwater operations. Much of the specialist knowledge from the oil and gas business is directly transferable to offshore wind power.
With Hywind Scotland and Hywind Tampen now in operation, Equinor alone has a share of 47% of the global power production from floating offshore wind.
Floating wind turbines are designed for deep water, and often have a draft of 80—110 metres. Norwegian industry has the advantage of having access to deep water quays and fjords, which are ideal conditions for installing wind turbines. Instead of carrying out extensive operations at sea, land-based installation of turbines in mainland Norway is faster, cheaper and safer.
The construction and operation of offshore wind farms requires advanced technology and infrastructure. This is constantly developing, but can lead to suppliers not recouping their development and testing costs. Standardisation and optimisation will become easier as the industry matures.
There are many players wanting to participate in the development of offshore wind projects, but at present, area allocation is limited. In other parts of the world, a shortage of licences has led to high costs and increased risk of financial losses. Profitability is a prerequisite for the industry to be able to grow.
Offshore wind projects are capital-intensive and have high investment costs in the initial phase. At the same time, the power from offshore wind must be competitive with other energy sources. The framework conditions for long-term earnings must be good for companies to be willing to invest in Norwegian offshore wind.
There is limited research so far on the environmental impact of offshore wind. It is therefore important to carry out thorough environmental assessments and develop measures that reduce the environmental impact. Equinor has carried out surveys and research in the Hywind Scotland project, and will continue to build knowledge in this area in future projects.
Now that Hywind Tampen is in production, Equinor has a 47% share of global power production from floating offshore wind.
Research into marine life started in the early 20th century in Norway. Research institutions such as the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, the Norwegian Institute of Natural Sciences (NINA), the University of Bergen and others have played an important role in collecting data and researching fish stocks and other marine life. These research environments are valuable for mapping the environmental impact of offshore wind.
Local support and commitment are crucial for the development of offshore wind farms. Some local communities may be concerned about changes to the landscape, noise, fisheries and tourism. Open dialogue and cooperation with affected parties is therefore important to ensure sustainable coexistence and long-term development of the industry.