An offshore solar development company has announced an EU joint industry project to develop floating offshore solar farms within offshore wind farms.
Dutch floating solar specialist Oceans of Energy announced plans to scale up existing offshore solar technology to 150MW capacity and install them among offshore wind turbines in the Dutch North Sea.
The company claims placing floating solar arrays in between wind turbines makes better use of the space, can increase renewable energy output from the offshore project in question, and lowers energy costs in domestic markets.
“We are kickstarting the development of a standardised offshore solar building block, which fits right in-between four offshore wind turbines. This allows for optimised multi-source offshore energy farms without competing for scarce and limited land space,” said Allard van Hoeken, CEO of Oceans of Energy.
The project involves collaboration with 15 European partners, including technology developer Solarge, environmental consultants Rina and testing facility Fraunhofer CSP.
Oceans of Energy claims to have installed the world’s first floating offshore solar panels in the Dutch North Sea in 2019.
The company is currently building a floating offshore solar farm it aims to install within the Hollandse Kust Noord offshore wind farm in the Dutch North Sea.
Offshore wind and solar hybrid projects already exist elsewhere in the world, including in China, where developer Shanghai Electric said it installed the world’s first solar and floating wind hybrid platform last year.
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