Aberdeen's offshore wind farm, also known as the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC), has become the site of a landmark operation that has the potential to revolutionize the offshore wind industry. Fugro, a Dutch company specializing in geo-intelligence and asset integrity solutions, has successfully carried out an inspection using one of its Blue Essence Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs) and the Blue Volta electrical remotely operated vehicle (eROV).
The eROV, remotely launched and recovered from Fugro's Remote Operations Center (ROC) in Aberdeen, inspected the structure of the wind turbines to assess their stability and safety. Fugro also created a detailed map of the seabed using data collected from a deepwater multibeam echosounder sensor mounted on the hull of the vessel.
The inspection was jointly funded by Vattenfall and Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult. According to Håkan Borgström, Deputy Director, O&M Product Line, Offshore Wind at Vattenfall, “This is a technology that could signify a real step forward for the industry, particularly from a safety perspective – reducing the need to deploy teams offshore, with survey work instead able to be managed from onshore.”
The success of the operation has demonstrated how remote technologies are bringing significant benefits to the offshore wind industry. Nick Simmons, Fugro's USV and Remote Working Director for Europe and Africa, said, “Our USVs can be operated from our global network of ROCs, allowing us to deliver faster and more sustainable inspection and geophysical services from onshore locations, which are also much safer for crew than the offshore environment.”
The Blue Essence USV is the first to receive approval from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) to operate fully remotely with an eROV and undertake surveys in UK waters. The vessel is capable of spending up to two weeks executing inspection activities at sea without refueling, resulting in a 95% reduction in carbon emissions compared to conventional ROV support vessels.
“As projects become increasingly far out to sea, this will also mean significantly lower carbon emissions, which is a vital part of Vattenfall's mission to deliver fossil-free living within a generation,” added Borgström.
The use of remote technologies such as the Blue Essence USV and Blue Volta eROV has the potential to bring about a significant reduction in carbon emissions in the offshore wind industry. As offshore wind projects become more ambitious and are located farther from shore, such technologies will play an increasingly important role in ensuring their viability.
