Floating Offshore Wind (FLOW) Prospectus
Overview
The UK’s ambition is to be a world leader in floating offshore wind (FLOW) by 2030, laying the foundations for a new sustainable long-term industry. This will help the UK to be at the forefront of the green industrial revolution as it accelerates its progress towards net zero emissions by 2050. This ambition is nowhere more apparent than in the Celtic Sea off the North coast of Cornwall where 4.4 GW of FLOW energy will be delivered by 2030, with a further 20 GW to be installed by 2045. The purpose of this prospectus is to outline the scale and reach of the University of Exeter’s activities related to (FLOW), and where it can add significant value to the activities of developers, the supply chain, and public and other stakeholders.
According to the Celtic Sea Cluster’s Regional Strategy (November 2022), Celtic Sea FLOW
will create a completely new industry in the region, bringing new high value jobs and export opportunities,aswellasstrengtheningthe local economy. It will build on existing regional capabilities in offshore renewables and enable access to a fast-growing global market.
The Great Southwest has said
The Celtic Sea presents long-term, high-calibre opportunities for allied investment in grid infrastructure, fabrication, operations and maintenance and offshore wind supply chains.
The knowledge and expertise this requires does not need to stay within the confines of the Southwest region, but the gains made locally, can be applied globally. Delivering these projects will require the support of universities working in partnership with industry to develop and harness skills from across a range of sectors. At Exeter, we recognise that research, development, innovation and skills will play a crucial role in helping to realise this opportunity. We can and will be a critical partner to industry bringing knowledge and expertise to help industry accelerate the development of technologies to support the design, installation, operation, and maintenance of complex FLOW systems, and help to produce the talent needed to deliver into the sector in the future.
The University’s research capability has the potential to fulfill a developmental role in every element of the life cycle of FLOW from initial consenting and Pre-FEED to decommissioning and life cycle environmental, social, and economic footprint determination and is directly aligned with the requirements of the industry. It includes but is not limited to:
• The ability to support technological development which respond to challenges faced in the deployment of cables, moorings, and umbilicals, and managing the complexity of anchoring in the deployment of FLOW device arrays.
• Deploying integrated sensor networks with remote sensing, autonomy, FLOW infrastructure, and vessels. This can vastly expand current environmental monitoring, met-ocean monitoring, and engineering monitoring.
• Conducting primary research to consider the social context of changing employment/ infrastructure with supply-chain development and environmental changes.
• Applying mathematical modelling to assess the economic and carbon costs, value, and productivity of port and associated infrastructure investment.
• Utilising the University of Exeter’s existing logistics, operations & maintenance simulation tools to assess industrial strategies.
• Engaging existing research teams to model energy vector options and the impact on demand and supply metrics for grid infrastructure.
• Developing wide-scale sensor networks to assess patterns of distribution of marine mammals, seabirds, fish and broader biodiversity, evaluating interactions between infrastructure and species, and modelling efficacy of suggested mitigations. Using this to understand their response to infrastructure and marine traffic in the context of planning for the continual expansion of FLOW.
• Providing monitoring and assessment of both fisheries species and fishers, to better predict changes expected from FLOW and better monitor fishing efforts at all levels in response to infrastructure as installed.
• Applied research to decarbonize marine operations deploying net zero vessels for O&M.
• Research related to the development of autonomous systems supporting maintenance and monitoring.
• Research focused on the development of circular principles in all aspects of design, manufacture and reuse.
Key Research Areas
As a Research-intensive university, one of 24 members of the Russell Group of leading research universities in the UK, we want to create a dynamic economy, with stronger communities. Our research focuses on how we can contribute to a better environment, to healthier lives and a fair and just society.
Our energy research is largely collaborative in nature and covers a wide range of energy activities covering clean energy and decarbonisation. For FLOW-related work, our groups perform outstanding research across the following themes:
Offshore Renewable Energy Group
Over 20 years’ experience in wave analysis; marine hydrodynamics; resource modelling; moorings; testing; reliability engineering; offshore installation, monitoring, operations, and maintenance. The team has developed tools for cradle-to-grave lifecycle analysis of renewable energy systems and latterly linked the supply of energy to the demand profile at local, regional, and national spatial levels to inform and support energy planning.
Key contact: Prof Philipp Thies, Professor of Renewable Energy
Email: P.R.Thies@exeter.ac.uk
Telephone: 01326 255849
Environmental Impact and Biodiversity Gain
Broad interests spanning marine ecology, especially the interface between marine installations and animals. We are expert in understanding the impacts, negative and positive of the inclusion of offshore renewable energy assets. In particular, we are interested in the net benefits to biodiversity and carbon that can be accrued.
Key contact: Prof Brendan Godley, Professor of Conservation Science
Email: B.J.Godley@exeter.ac.uk
Telephone: 01326 371861
Policy and Community Impact
The Exeter Energy Policy Group and Geography Department provide an academic hub for the interdisciplinary study of energy policy. We place sustainability and change at the heart of debates about energy policy and governance. We work collaboratively with stakeholders and researchers on the economics and politics of energy to find new and innovative approaches for enabling the transition to a low-carbon, sustainable and affordable energy system.
Key contact: Dr Iain Soutar, Senior Lecturer in Energy Policy
Email: I.Soutar@exeter.ac.uk
Electrical Power Systems
Our researchers, study the connectivity of renewables and its impact on power system resilience and operation. We have expertise in digital control of power electronics for distributed energy sources, hybrid vehicles, and machines and drives.
Power electronics researchers have designed and prototyped several commercial products that include grid and parallel connected inverters, Microgrid, DC/DC converters for hybrid vehicles, and sensor-less drives for high-speed magnet machines.
Key contact: Prof Mohammad Abusara, Professor in Control and Power Electronics
Email: M.Abusara@exeter.ac.uk
Telephone: 01326 371885
Smart Grid networks
Smart Grid Research in Exeter focuses on electrical power networks with respect to the implementation of Smart Grids, Low-carbon Electrical Energy Networks, and integration of renewables.
Expertise: Applications of IoT and AI/data science to smart energy networks, network protection, electromagnetic modelling, thermal modelling, and power system analysis & optimisation.
Key contact: Prof Zhong Fan, Professor of Net Zero Energy Systems
Email: Z.Fan@exeter.ac.uk
Computational Modelling and Data Science for Energy Management
Our Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research Group specialises in finding optimised solutions for Energy Management. The research benefits from the expertise gathered through multiple real-world industry-focused projects.
Energy Management research at Exeter focuses on sustainable supply chain management, Industry 4.0 applications, smart infrastructures, renewable energy management and forecasting systems. Other interests surround models and tools to assess the environmental, economic and social sustainability of a wide range of sociotechnical systems.
The group pioneers work in research areas that have a multitude of real-world applications including Artificial Intelligence, Machine learning and machine autonomy and Evolutionary algorithms.
Key contact: Prof Edward Keedwell, Professor of Artificial Intelligence
Email: E.C.Keedwell@exeter.ac.uk
Telephone: 01392 724014
Future Clean Mobility
Research focuses on low-emission, high-efficiency integrated power systems for applications in the surface transport sector, driving next generation vehicles towards zero carbon. Significant work has been undertaken in the development of net zero offshore support vessels and crew transfer vessels.
Key contact: Prof Christopher Smith, Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Email: C.W.Smith@exeter.ac.uk
Telephone: 01392 723652
Facilities
We have a range of facilities to assess, model, demonstrate, test, and improve the reliability of components and systems. We have developed research facilities allowing a service simulation and accelerated test approach.
Falmouth Bay marine energy test site (FabTest)
Dynamic Marine Component test facility (DMaC)
Wide range of field-testing equipment
Hydrodynamic analysis software
Large scale zero emissions dynamometer
Electrical, chemical and materials processing test facilities
Education and Skills –Workforce Development
The University degree offerings encompass a wide range of science, engineering and environmental courses, with an ever-increasing portfolio of marine focused programmes. Many include business and management. The University can also provide bespoke executive education short courses and continuous professional development courses for individual businesses and small groups of professionals. The University works alongside other regional stakeholders to develop a workforce development strategy for FLOW in the Celtic Sea and is actively involved in green skills and digital skills development in the region.
The University is a partner in the Industrial Doctoral Centre for Offshore Renewable Energy (IDCORE), where students work within offshore renewables companies on innovative engineering solutions that support industrial development.
The University is a partner on behalf of the centre for doctoral training within the Sustainable Management of UK Marine Resources (SuMMeR) project, providing interdisciplinary research to deliver to the next generation of marine researchers.
About the University of Exeter
137th Top 15 92% We’re
in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2023, based on full-time, first degree, UK domiciled graduates, HESA Graduate Outcomes Survey 2019/20, Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2023.
in the Guardian University Guide 2023 and The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023.
of graduates in or due to start employment or further study fifteen months after graduation.
leading the world
in Clean Water and amongst the very best in Europe for Climate Action and Zero Hunger.
