Norway-based offshore engineering and construction company Aker Solutions has signed a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract to study the design and delivery of concrete foundations for the wind turbine generators (WTG) for the planned Empire Wind project in New York.
Empire Wind is being developed by Equinor and BP through their 50/50 strategic partnership in the U.S.
The Empire Wind lease area, awarded to Equinor in 2016, is 15-30 miles southeast of Long Island and has a total area of 80,000 acres. Its two phases of development have a potential generation capacity of 2GW.
Under the contract with Empire Offshore Wind LLC, Aker Solutions will analyze how to design, construct and install concrete substructures standing on the seafloor to support the wind turbine generators.
The scope also includes analysis of construction methods and models for marine operations to install the structures.
"The company will use its world-leading track record from previous deliveries of concrete substructures to support the partnership in defining effective solutions for the Empire Wind project," Aker Solutions said.
Aker Solutions also said that front-end engineering work will benefit several U.S.-based partners and suppliers. These include construction company Kiewit Infrastructure Inc. and regulatory and permitting expert McLaren.
"In recent years, we have increased our activity within low-carbon and renewable energy projects, and offshore wind is a key growth area. Aker Solutions is already delivering concrete hulls to Equinor’s Hywind Tampen offshore floating wind project. We are pleased to see that the Empire Wind development is considering using proven concrete technology and that we can contribute with our expertise," said Kjetel Digre, chief executive officer of Aker Solutions.
The FEED award for Empire Wind follows the completion of the pre-FEED won in 2019. The work starts immediately and will be completed in August 2021, Aker Solutions said.