Stationkeeping

Offshore renewable energy sites are by nature subject to severe environmental conditions (wind, currents, wave or all). Extreme metocean conditions are not necessarily the case for offshore hydrocarbon developments – from which most offshore engineering experience derives – since locations are selected for the presence of subterranean reserves. Offshore renewable energy developments also require many more structures than a hydrocarbon development owing to the lower yield per structure, and therefore more foundations or anchors to secure the structures to the seabed. Traditionally, offshore structures are secured to the seabed by driven piles, suction caissons or gravity foundations that require a surface vessel for installation and can take a day or more for a single foundation to be installed. As with offshore site investigation vessels, offshore installation vessels have day rates of tens to hundreds of thousands of pounds such that time offshore for installation must be minimized to make greater use of the oceans feasible. These two key factors create unprecedented challenges for station-keeping future ocean structures.

Activities within Research Goal 2 ‘Stationkeeping’ focus on development of new tools and techniques for efficient and effective stationkeeping required to unlock the potential of renewable ocean energy, and to enable competitive solutions for aquaculture and future ocean space applications. These new technologies will meet the need for rapid installation with minimal intervention to secure structures in the ocean.