SENER Renewable Investments, a company of the SENER engineering and technology group, and the Amper Group, through its subsidiary Nervión Naval-Offshore, have signed a collaboration agreement to develop and market platform technology for floating offshore wind.
Under this agreement, SENER and Amper will develop and market a semi-submersible floating steel platform for offshore wind turbines with a power in excess of 15 megawatts (MW).
The prototype, known as Hive Wind, is in the engineering development phase and under testing on a scale model in the IHCantabria wave tank to assess its hydrodynamic performance.
This agreement involves several business units of the Amper Group, while SENER Renewable Investments will receive contributions from SENER Engineering.
After signing the contract, the General Manager of SENER Renewable Investments, Miguel Domingo, noted that the development of Hive Wind will be made possible thanks to the joint and complementary capacities of the two groups, and will offer a “highly competitive and innovative product to boost offshore wind energy, the implementation of which is essential to the fight against climate change.”
Roberto Bouzas, the General Manager of Nervión Naval Offshore, of the Amper Group, stressed that the commitment to offshore wind is a key point for the company, as envisaged in its strategic plan. “This alliance between SENER and our engineering division places us in a good position to develop standardized floating structures and leverages all the know-how acquired by both companies during the last six years in the sector,” he added.
SENER and Amper are seeking to optimize the design of floating structures to expand the mass production of low-cost floating units in response to the demand for this type of structure expected in the near future.