SBM Offshore, builder of Guyana’s floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels, has made another achievement in its pursuit of cleaner, greener energy solutions, this time by harnessing the power of the ocean to generate wind energy.
The company successfully delivered the first floating wind unit to its designated location, situated 17 kilometres offshore Marseille, France, as part of the Provence Grand Large Project. The project is being developed by Prysmian Group – a Milan-based energy company.
In August 2023, the company said it pre-deployed anchor piles and mooring lines, laying the groundwork for the subsequent stages of the project.
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Last week marked the completion of the hook-up process, which involved connecting the first floater to its 8.4-megawatt turbine.
All of these operations were managed by SBM Offshore and executed using their construction vessel, the Normand Installer.
“Congratulations to all our #SBMers, the full onshore and offshore crews, and our partners who have been involved in this great achievement and first-of-a-kind operation!” the company said in a Sept. 20 announcement via LinkedIn.
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The Provence Grand Large project is the first floating wind project to be built in France. The project is a small-scale pilot project intended to demonstrate that offshore floating wind farms can become economically viable. It will provide 24 megawatts (MW) of clean, safe, and reliable energy to more than 40,000 households in France.
SBM Offshore was contracted to provide the engineering services.
