DeepFarm

The DeepFarm projects aims to develop a suite of deep water mooring system technologies to reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCoE) of floating offshore wind projects planned for the deep waters offshore the US West Coast and Hawaii.

Scope

Mooring system components

Funding

National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium, funded by DOE, NYSERDA, and various State agencies

Total budget

$765,000

Kick-off

Q1 2021

Duration

30 months

Project lead

Principle Power

Partners

Mainstream Renewable Power, American Bureau of Shipping, U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, SeaSystems, University of Massachusetts

Going deeper

DeepFarm is a NOWRDC (National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium) funded project addressing the development of innovative mooring systems aimed at reducing the overall cost of deep water floating offshore wind farms.

DeepFarm aims to develop software tools to optimize innovative mooring system components, such as shared anchors, suction piles, and unique combinations of materials, including in-line tensioners and polyester ropes. The project will evaluate the LCOE-reduction potential of each component, considering impacts to fabrication, transportation, installation, and operations.

DeepFarm will leverage the expertise and real-world experience of industry partners and build on the academic work of the University of Massachusetts to determine the optimal mooring designs for deep water commercial-scale floating offshore wind projects that are representative of the U.S. West Coast and Hawaii. The most competitive site-specific design will be submitted to the American Bureau of Shipping, which will evaluate the functional capability and risk profile design against applicable rules and guidelines. The expected end result is an Approval-in-Principle from ABS, signalling a bankable, FEED-ready deep water mooring design.

This award once again demonstrates Principle Power’s ability to lead cutting-edge research and innovation, building on our technical excellence and proven expertise in floating wind. We are looking forward to working with the key market players, world-class universities and leading research centers to deliver technical solutions for mooring systems that will underpin the competitiveness of floating wind while achieving significant cost reductions.

- Seth Price, Principle Power’s VP of Technology

About NOWRDC
The National Offshore Wind R&D Consortium was established in 2018 by DOE and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, with each providing $20.5 million to fund high-impact research projects that lower the costs of U.S. offshore wind and support supply chain development. State agencies in Maryland, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Maine have since contributed funding, resulting in a total investment of around $47 million.