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French-Japanese investment agreement for the fnancing of ofshore foating wind projects
BW Ideol’s concept uses a concrete hull which the company says is ideally suited to mass production and to onsite construction with a high level of local content.
BW Ideol has executed an investment agreement with JERA, Japan’s largest utility company, and ADEME Investissement, a French State-owned investment company aiming at fnancing innovative infrastructure projects funded by the Investment for the Future Program, to create an investment company for fnancing the co-development of ofshore wind projects using BW Ideol’s patented ring-shaped Damping Pool foating foundation technology over the next fve years.
ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF BW IDEOL.
BW Ideol’s innovative Damping Pool foating ofshore wind technology is compatible with any commercial ofshore wind turbine, without modifcation to the turbine. In the Damping Pool concept, motions are reduced by using the hydrodynamic properties of a water mass entrapped in and installation costs of any other foating foundation and is competitive with bottom-fxed foundations from in excess of 35m.
a central well, the oscillations of which oppose the excitation force generated by waves. BW Ideol’s concept uses a concrete hull which the company says is ideally suited to mass production and to onsite construction with a high level of local content. According to BW Ideol the Damping Pool has half the construction
Investment for the future
BW Ideol will hold 51% of the new entity, with JERA and ADEME Investissement
holding 24.5% each. The fnal agreement is in line with the Key Terms signed by the three parties in 2020. “We are honoured to have signed the investment agreement with JERA and ADEME Investissement. This agreement materialises our solid relationship with JERA, Japan’s largest utility company and an established player in ofshore wind developments especially in Japan and Asia. We are also pleased to further consolidate our relationship with the Investment for the Future Program (sponsor of ADEME Investissement) which has been a partner of BW Ideol in the fnancing of its Floatgen demonstrator. This 3-party collaboration refects our joint ambition to fully capitalise on the opportunities created by the rapidly growing ofshore foating wind market by leveraging BW Ideol’s growth strategy track as co-developer of foating wind projects based on our unique foating foundation technology”, says Paul de la Guérivière, CEO of BW Ideol.
Accelerate competiveness
Created in December 2018 as part of the Investment for the Future programme, ADEME Investissement aims to fnance innovative infrastructure projects in the area of ecological and energy transition alongside with private investors. ADEME Investissement is 100% held by the French State and has a budget of EUR400 million. the Investments for the Future programme, established in 2010 with a budget of EUR57 billion, aims to stimulate employment, boost productivity and increase the competitiveness of French businesses by encouraging investment and innovation in priority sectors to drive growth and employment. “We do believe that foating ofshore wind is on its way to confrm its potential and become a substantial contributor to achieving future climate goals. This partnership
Floatgen in Saint-Nazaire.
The investment company is created for fnancing the co-development of offshore wind projects using BW Ideol’s patented ring-shaped Damping Pool foating foundation technology over the next fve years.
aims at fnancing frst commercial scale projects and at supporting BW Ideol’s technology as both will contribute to accelerate the competitiveness of foating ofshore wind”, comments Arnaud Leroy, CEO of ADEME.
Large potential
JERA’s Managing Executive Ofcer Satoshi Yajima states, “Floating ofshore wind has a large energy potential and is expected to play a signifcant role in expanding the introduction of renewable energy in the future. We believe this agreement between the three companies will accelerate the development of foating ofshore wind and open up the possibility of using ofshore energy in Japan and other areas with limited potential for fxed-bottom ofshore wind.”
