On Monday, Bechtel, America’s 13th largest privately held company, and a giant in global infrastructure, energy, engineering and construction announced that it is partnering with Hexicon, a Stockholm, Sweden-based provider of floating offshore wind turbines, on a series of deep-water power generation projects off the U.K. coast.
According to Bechtel, the fact that Hexicon’s technology can be deployed in deep waters is a “game-changer” for power generation, as it produces energy at lower cost than other solutions that are designed for shallow water platforms fixed to the seabed. Positioning wind turbines in deeper waters, further from shore, provides better wind conditions, while affixing the turbines to floating platforms allows them to align with the direction of the wind, maximizing their operating efficiency. Hexicon’s deep-water offshore wind solution is designed as a “twin” turbine, which allows for more turbines to be installed in a defined sea area, compared to traditional offshore turbines, increasing the energy yield per acre.
In a statement on the Bechtel partnership on Monday, Hexicon’s new CEO Marcus Thor–who just took the company helm on March 1–said his company’s technology is one of a small handful of solutions worldwide that can support deep water offshore wind.
“The U.K. has shown great initiative in this industry and we are delighted to have…Bechtel to help us deploy our innovative twin turbine floating foundation in British waters,” Thor said. “This will be good for the U.K. and beyond, as the world’s demand for clean energy solutions continues to grow exponentially.
Bringing it to market
Initially, Hexicon and Bechtel will develop the design and constructability of the offshore wind facility. In addition to demonstrating a 35 to 40MW floating wind project, the team will also establish how the technology can be brought to market and explore the roles for local suppliers in shipbuilding, mooring, and installations, as well as the long-term serving needs of floating offshore wind.
“As a company that has a long history solving complex engineering problems, including in the offshore industries, we are confident that this technology is possible and could be a real game-changer for the renewables market,” Bechtel spokesman George Whittaker said in a comment on the partnership.
This partnership with Hexicon is the latest in a series of renewable and low-carbon power projects for Bechtel. The company recently built Ivanpah, the world’s largest solar thermal energy facility, and is nearing completion of Keeyask, a new hydro-electric facility in Canada that will generate enough electricity per year to power 400,000 homes.
