The Carbon Trust has contracted four companies to carry out a study on the moorings and anchoring systems for floating offshore wind in challenging environments.
The companies that will undertake the study are Leask Marine, Wood Thilsted, First Energy Development and Exeter Consulting.
According to Leask Marine, the work includes conducting assessments for very shallow and very deep water depths, as well as challenging geotechnical conditions.
The study is expected to review novel mooring and anchoring technologies and methods that can help reduce the lifecycle costs of floating offshore wind.
The Carbon Trust issued three tenders for floating wind technology at the beginning of the year, one of which sought companies and consortia to identify and evaluate innovative mooring and anchoring solutions for a range of challenging environmental conditions.
The main objectives are evaluating current mooring system solutions and technology development needs to commercialize innovative mooring and anchoring solutions, as well as developing technical design specifications for a range of site conditions and realistic design scenarios with robust cost estimates.