UK firm wins grant to test anchoring technology for floating offshore wind
Pamela Largue
Posted on: 1 May 2023
Swift Anchors has secured a £395|000 ($492|000) grant to test its anchor technology in rock seabed sites for floating offshore wind projects.
Scottish offshore anchoring solutions firm Swift Anchors has secured a £395,000 ($492,000) grant to test its anchor technology in rock seabed sites for floating offshore wind projects.
Swift Anchors, which has been owned by AQUOS SCHOTTEL Marine Technologies since October 2022, was awarded the funding from the Offshore Wind Growth Partnership (OWGP).
The firm has been working to develop a rapidly deployable, environmentally friendly rock anchoring solution for the offshore energy sector.
Have you read?
Future of offshore wind lies in maximising existing assets
300GW North Sea offshore wind by 2050 – Ostend Declaration
To this end, Swift Anchors will use the grant for a project to evaluate data from a number of planned Floating Offshore Wind (FOW) projects, which are currently in the pipeline.
According to the firm, the data will be used to create baseline specifications for its rock anchoring solution, before building and deploying scale anchor models at a test site.
Swift Anchors will work with several subcontractors such as Morek and Mollart Cox to deliver the project. They will also partner with the University of Dundee for testing across a variety of rock strengths. The resulting data will be evaluated and the anchor design will be updated and certified by DNV against a floating wind standard: DNV-ST-0119.
David Ainsworth, managing director of Swift Anchors said: “Thanks to the OWGP’s grant support, we are able to work with the University of Dundee and other companies on this anchoring project. It gives us the opportunity to capitalise on the fantastic opportunities that floating offshore wind offers. If the UK and other countries are to deploy the potential FOW capacity over the next decade and more, finding cost-effective and robust anchoring solutions for diverse and challenging seabeds are essential.”
OWGP is a long-term programme that is promoting closer collaboration across the offshore wind supply chain in the UK. It's funded by the UK Offshore Wind Industry Council and Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult leads its delivery.
