OPFLOW - Options on a Pilot Project for Floating Offshore Wind
This project examines the potential for a pre-commercial pilot Floating Offhsore Wind (FLOW) project off the south or west coast of Ireland
Project Insights
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€69,853
Total Project Costs -
1 yr
Project Duration -
2019
Year Funded
Project Description
Traditional barriers to development of offshore wind in Ireland are gradually being removed, with clarity emerging through the Renewable Energy Support Scheme (RESS) and progress towards Maritime Spatial Planning. The global technology advancement leading to the reduction in the Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE), the advantages of offshore wind resources in Ireland, and the rising demand in clean energy, make Ireland an increasingly attractive emerging market. There is an opportunity for Ireland to seize a tactical advantage as an early mover in Floating Offshore Wind (FLOW).
The OPFLOW project is a desktop study delivered by a research team through MaREI, in University College Cork, in collaboration with the ORE Catapult in the UK. This project examines the potential for a pre-commercial pilot project for FLOW off the south or west coast. It tests the hypothesis that existing locational attributes such as port location (i.e. Port of Cork and Shannon Foynes Port) and grid connectivity (i.e. infrastructure linked to the Kinsale Gas pipeline making landfall in Cork Harbour, and grid at Moneypoint, respectively), create advantageous conditions.
The project aims to provide options and pathways for policy makers on if and how to realise a pre-commercial pilot project, thereby accelerating FLOW as a subsidy free alternative in Ireland's energy portfolio. It adds to the ongoing SFI Eirwind project, by focusing on a specific pre-commercial project concept.
Further information on the outputs from the project can be found in the project report linked below.
Project Details
Total Project Cost: €69,853
Funding Agency: SEAI
Year Funded: 2019
Lead Organisation: University College Cork (UCC)
Collaborators: Principle Power; Simply Blue Energy; JB Barry