United Kingdom – Bureau Veritas (BV) has been chosen to carry out the project certification of Erebus, the first offshore wind farm in the Celtic Sea, located in Wales (UK), and one of the world’s largest floating offshore wind projects.
To be completed by 2026, the Erebus project will generate up to 100 megawatts of clean energy, enough to power 93,000 homes each year in Pembrokeshire.
Erebus wind farm
As a result of a Joint Venture called Blue Gem Wind, which TotalEnergies formed with Simply Blue Group, the Erebus wind farm was born. Based on their most recent Windfloat technology, Principle Power will create the floating platforms. BV granted “Approval in Principle” to this floater concept in 2016. Multi-megawatt wind turbine generators are supported by a semi-sumbersible platform that is ballasted. An innovative closed-loop ballast system compensates for changes in wind speed and direction on the three-column platform moored with a five-line catenary mooring system.
Project verification and certification
According to regulatory requirements, BV will provide independent verification and project certification. Site assessment, design basis evaluation, integrated load analysis and detailed design evaluation for all components of the floating wind turbines, including inter-array cables, are all included in the scope of the evaluation. BV will provide independent analysis of the design documentation using its integrated modeling tool Opera, which accounts for all components of a floating asset or wind turbine, from mooring systems to blades. Multibody interactions, aerohydro couplings, and seakeeping and station-keeping for floating structures are all addressed by opera.
This includes all post-design phases, including manufacturing, transportation, and installation and commissioning (T&I). Bureau Veritas’ global surveyor network in 140 countries can help Blue Gem Wind with fabrication and operation activities on the ground, wherever they are needed.
