Wind Energy – Floating Wind
Principle Power has unveiled two new semisubmersible floating wind foundation designs: the WindFloat TC (tubular, center column) and WindFloat FC (flat-panel, center column).
The new designs are natural evolutions of the existing WindFloat technologies that combines proven features to support a wind turbine located on a column in the center of the platform.
Designed to complement the existing perimeter column designs – WindFloat T and WindFloat F – the new solutions share the same 4th generation design heritage and benefits such as a Smart Hull Trim system to maximize annual energy production and reduce loads; fatigue-resilient architecture optimized for large wind turbines; compact footprint and shallow draft for maximum compatibility with infrastructure; and modular block subcomponent philosophy for high flexibility and compatibility with existing supply chains.
Wind turbines are growing larger, and manufacturers are increasingly focused on standardization of their products for floating wind. The availability of both perimeter column and center column designs means that the WindFloat portfolio delivers market leading cost, weight, and performance for any wind turbine available on the market.
The outlook for floating wind is strong and as the market enters a ‘commercial’ era, wind turbine suppliers are now thinking about how to position their products for maximum standardization across the floating pipeline. With this in mind, we’ve developed WindFloat center column designs that are optimized for 15MW+ turbines with stiffer towers.
As a natural evolution from the WindFloat® product line, the new WindFloat TC and WindFloat FC designs benefit from Principle Power’s 13-year operational track record and allow for similar, industrialized assembly methods leveraging the same supply chains – a critical component in the scale-up of floating wind worldwide.
The full WindFloat product portfolio, now consisting of the WindFloat F, WindFloat T, WindFloat FC and WindFloat TC, offers developers industrialized, FEED-ready solutions for any floating wind project, with any metocean condition, any wind turbine model, and any supply chain preference.
