Floating wind turbines ‘gravity base’

The key question on Iv’s radar was whether there was still room for innovation in the floating wind turbine market. Extensive research indicated that it would be almost impossible to produce a new overall concept for floating wind turbines due to the large number of ideas that have already been published. Instead, it was decided to focus on an innovative concept for greater water depths, which resulted in a self-installing wind turbine with tendons (cables) and a ‘gravity base’.

The challenge was to create a self-installing wind turbine that could be used in deeper water where traditional foundation structures are inefficient. Developing the concept required a lot of brainstorming, sketching, designing and discussion within the team. The patent application process was complicated and required a lot of review and collaboration, but the final grant of the patent was seen as an outstanding achievement.

The patented concept is suitable for water depths of around seventy to five hundred metres and offers an alternative to traditional foundation structures in the offshore wind industry. The modularity of the concept allows it to be adapted to different turbines and sizes, giving it the potential to be widely applied and make a significant contribution to the energy transition.