Integrating mWave wave power technology with floating wind turbines will optimise the utilisation of seabed lease areas.
More MW per square mile
Integrated Semi-submersible Platform with Innovative Renewable Energy
The emerging Floating Offshore Wind market is about to set sail, projected to contribute 400GW of renewable energy globally by 2050.
Until now, efforts to reduce the Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) of Floating Offshore Wind has predominantly focused on increasing turbine rotor diameters. InSPIRE responds to the LCOE challenge with a new solution, a cost competitive innovation that can deliver more renewable power at a lower cost to facilitate a faster journey to net zero and a prosperous blue economy.
Floating Offshore Wind + Wave
The InSPIRE project, led by TechnipFMC and Bombora, marries a wealth of experience in marine offshore engineering with the worlds largest capacity wave energy technology to deliver a dual-power ‘wind +wave’ market disruptive platform solution to fast-track Floating Offshore Wind deployment.
The InSPIRE demonstration project paves the way for a full commercial roll-out of a Series 1 platform with a 12 MW rated capacity, followed by a Series 2 with a 18MW rated capacity.
Working with policy makers, energy companies, academia and the supply chain a highly competitive Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) of €50 per MWhr is predicted by 2030.
The InSPIRE project represents a significant advancement for the industry and a major step forward for a low carbon future.
Partners
About InSPIRE
Capitalise on ALL of the abundant natural resource accessible
InSPIRE takes a simple 3 step-approach to generating more Floating Offshore Wind energy:
Exploit the existing, unproductive submerged platform infrastructure
Increase capacity, consistency and efficiency for cost reduction benefits
1.
2.
3.
50%
GENERATING CAPACITY ON ONE PLATFORM
+
Reduction in the cost of energy
20%
More consistent power supply to the grid
+
Optimised use of seabed lease area and project balance of plant
+
Compared to a wind only solution InSPIRE delivers significant benefits
Partners
The InSPIRE consortium led by TechnipFMC and Bombora brings together large companies, SMEs, and academia across five European countries, all respected in their field of expertise. They are committed to developing and testing a new renewable energy technology that can have a significant impact on the decarbonisation agenda.
These are the partners we are already working with to
deliver this project:
mWave™ features a series of air-filled rubber membrane covered concave cell modules positioned below the ocean’s surface transforming the submerged platform structure into productive real-estate, capturing maximum energy.
As waves pass over mWave, under-water pressure increases, causing each rubber membrane to compress sequentially, forcing air from inside the cells into a duct. Valves control a one-way air flow to the turbine — directly spinning a generator converting this rotation into electricity. After passing through the turbine the air is recycled to re-inflate each membrane in a continuous sequence. The sustainable power generated by mWave is transferred to the electrical grid via the same sub-sea cable used for the wind turbine.
The membranes can be fully deflated creating a “sleep mode” protecting mWave from storm damage. mWave’s simple and modular design, with removable component parts, makes it efficient to operate and maintain. Its modularity also makes it rapidly scalable.
mWave™
How does the InSPIRE Platform optimise ?
Increased dispatchable power
The power smoothing advantages of combining wind and wave power technologies in offshore energy parks are beneficial to managing power supply. Waves are more persistent and predictable than the wind. Combining wave and wind power production can deliver greater consistency and significantly increase output in energy production.
Reduced infrastructure costs
Integrating mWave wave power technology with floating wind turbines will result in shared cost reduction benefits of electrical infrastructure including export cable and grid as well as the shared platform.
Seamless Operations and Maintenance
All operations and maintenance are achievable using existing service vessels used in both fixed bottom wind and offshore oil and gas industries.
Platform innovation
TechnipFMC, Bombora and its partners will install, operate and demonstrate at sea a grid-connected integrated floating platform with a capacity of 6MW (2MW wave + 4MW wind power). The successful demonstration of InSPIRE will bring valuable experience, knowledge and de-risk upscaling, paving the way for commercial projects.
InSPIRE’s vision is to build knowledge and confidence in a groundbreaking integrated offshore energy solution, enabling maturity at a level where it can support the deployment of Gigawatts of renewable energy in deeper waters and out-compete fossil energy in the electricity market.
The InSPIRE project has a clear roadmap to commer-cialisation and achieving a highly competitive Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) of €50 per MWhr by 2030.
Pre-FEED
FEED
FID
Construction
Commissioning
4Q20
1Q21
2Q21
4Q23
Integrated Wave & Wind LCOE Benefits
2020
2025
2030
2035
2040
2045
2050
€ 0
€ 25
€ 50
€ 75
€ 100
€ 125
€ 150
€ 175
€ 200
Levelized Cost of Energy
Floating Offshore Wind
Floating Integrated mWave + Wind
Floating Offshore Wind Installed Capacity 400GW by 2050
Integrated mWave + Wind Installed Capacity 50 GW by 2050
Demonstrator
Series 1
Series 2
12 MW
18 MW
6 MW
=
Wave
+
2 MW
4 MW
6 MW
Wind
4 MW
8 MW
12 MW
Demonstration
Pre-commercial
Commercial
A clear and competitive commercialisation roadmap
IRENA 2019; Fraunhofer ISE, McKinsey Energy Insights Global Energy Perspective, April 2020
ICOE 2021
International Ocean Energy Conference
April 28-30
UTC 2021
June 2
Upcoming events
ICOE 2021
International Ocean Energy Conference
April 28-30
UTC 2021
June 2
Upcoming events
Contact us
Sam Leighton
Managing Director
Bombora
Sam(at)bomborawave.com
Joachim Sverdrup-Thygeson
Business Development Manager
TechnipFMC
joachim.sverdrup-thygeson(at)technipfmc.com
