Aker Offshore Wind, an offshore wind energy spin-off of Aker Solutions, has installed Light Detection and Ranging buoys (LiDARs) offshore Ulsan, South Korea.
The company said the operation was a major milestone for the company’s KFWind consortium, which is working to develop an offshore floating wind park of 500 MW in the first stage.
The LiDARs perform wind measurements and will stay in place for at least one year to collect data from the area, the company said.
Following the completion of the wind measurement data collection, KFWind aims to submit an application for an electricity business license in the second half of 2021.
"This is a great accomplishment for us at Aker Offshore Wind and everyone working on the KFWind project,” says Astrid Skarheim Onsum, chief executive officer of Aker Offshore Wind. "We are excited about reaching another major milestone and look forward to further develop good working relationships with all Ulsan stakeholders."
Aker Offshore Wind owns a 30.6 percent stake in KFWind. The other partners are Ocean Winds, a joint venture between EDPR and Engie, and Wind Power Korea Co., Ltd. (WPK).
KFWind in January 2019 signed an MoU with Ulsan City which secures KFWind three potential floating sites for development in the Ulsan region, with a potential combined gross capacity up to 1.5GW.
The first phase of the project includes the development of a 500MW floating offshore wind farm. The project is targeting a financial investment decision (FID) in 2024 and starting up commercial operation in 2026.