INDUSTRY NEWS
GRID DIGITALISATION EFFORTS
ABB is investing in Danish start- up Okto Grid to advance the development of technology that will digitalise and extend the useful life of ageing electrical assets to meet the growing demand for reliable and stable power. Okto Grid has developed a pilot solution that digitalises electrical infrastructure to enable real-time, remote condition and performance monitoring to prolong their working life by another 40 years. Optimising safety and efficiency of older equipment will enhance reliable and stable power supplies and reduce the equipment’s total carbon emissions. As part of the collaboration, ABB will provide its electrification, digitalisation and industry knowledge to enhance the development of the solution and accelerate technology and commercial readiness.
A £690 million opportunity for the UK
The economic potential of EMEC’s proposed 100 MW floating offshore wind test and demonstration site has been estimated at £690 million to UK economy. The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), based in Orkney, Scotland, concluded concept design for a new floating offshore wind test and demonstration site in 2022 and is aiming to secure a lease for a 100MW site ~20km west of Orkney. EMEC’s proposed test site will
comprise six individual berths and accommodate floating offshore wind
turbines of up to 20MW rated capacity. Four of the six berths will be grid- connected, while an additional two berths will be reserved for power-to-X applications. The site will offer floating wind
developers the opportunity to prove performance and de-risk technologies in energetic metocean conditions, typical of ScotWind, Celtic Sea, Californian, and other commercially leased projects. Independent analysis by consultancy Biggar Economics calculates that the proposed demonstration site has the potential to generate £690 million gross value add (GVA) to the UK economy, £442 million of which will accrue in Scotland.
Webtool cutters selected for wind project
Hydraulic tools specialist Allspeeds has designed, built and supplied Webtool steel wire emergency cutters to specialist hydraulic drive engineer, Hydrauvision, for a noise mitigation system (NMS) deployed during offshore wind monopile installation. The NMS consists
of a screen with a ballast box that can be lowered to and hoisted from the seabed by 14 hydraulic winches, mounted on individual support frames installed around the pile gripper system. Each support frame includes a Webtool cutter alongside the
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winch. During normal use, the wire rope from each winch passes through a cutter without making contact. In the event the monopile becomes unbalanced, the 14 cutters can be activated remotely, simultaneously cutting the wire ropes and releasing the NMS screen. The NMS is being
deployed by DEME’s HLV Orion. The vessel is equipped with a 5,000-tonne crane and a motion- compensated pile gripper system, which are used to instal monopiles for offshore wind projects.
FUSION SOFTWARE FOR GRID RESILIENCE
Control software used in fusion energy research has the potential to help grid operators cope with increased supply and demand, concluded a study by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) and Oxfordshire tech start-up, Sygensys. The six-month study assessed how fusion control software known has ‘MARTe’, can be transferred to the wider energy sector to help boost grid resilience. Nizar Ben Ayed at UKAEA,
said: “There is a rapidly emerging need for improved control systems that provide system level control in addition to grid level harmonisation.”
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