Aker Solutions and Cognite have been awarded a US$2M grant from the California Energy Commission for a project called ‘NextWind Real Time Condition Monitoring’
The project aims to develop a holistic digital solution that will enable condition monitoring of a floating windfarm and its impact on the environment via live data streaming.
Aker Solutions and Cognite, which specialises in developing digital representations of industrial processes, were selected for the grant award as part of the California Energy Commission’s Electric Programme Investment Charge (EPIC).
The EPIC provides grants for companies applying research and projects designed to help develop next-generation wind energy technology.
Projects must include objectives that increase the competitiveness, performance, and reliability of wind generation while reducing costs and effects on the environment and wildlife.
A digital twin of physical offshore wind assets will be developed to assess conditions and integrity management. The real-time information it provides will enable analysis of data to help reduce operating expenses and maintenance costs by improving production efficiencies.
Making this data available to a wide range of users will allow for additional understanding of environmental and wildlife impacts to help reduce mitigation.
Aker Solutions chief executive Luis Araujo said, “This programme aligns with Aker Solutions’ ambition to develop the offshore wind market in California, providing affordable renewable electricity to the state.”
Cognite founder and chief executive Dr John Markus Lervik said, “We look forward to employing Cognite Data Fusion to this project to help revolutionise the wind market in California through data liberation and contextualisation.
“We believe applying new digital technologies is key to accelerating the green transition and increasing adoption of sustainable solutions in offshore wind by making them more cost-effective and efficient.”
In April 2018, the Redwood Coast Energy Authority selected a consortium which includes Aker Solutions, Principle Power and EDPR Offshore to enter into a public-private partnership to pursue the development of the proposed Redwood Coast offshore wind project.
The 150-MW floating offshore windfarm is being planned 30 km off the coast of Humboldt Bay, California and is expected online in the mid-2020s.
The team intends to use this project as a case study for the new initiative.
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