Environmental Resources Management’s (ERM) floating wind-to-hydrogen project, ERM Dolphyn, has entered the commercial demonstration phase, which will be supported by Offshore Design Engineering (ODE) after the company just won a contract to provide topside Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) services.
Across this phase of development, ODE will be responsible for FEED engineering for the topside equipment, export pipeline, and facility design, while ODE’s consortium members Tractabel and Vestas will assist in the building and operation of the 10 MW commercial demonstration unit that is expected to be deployed by summer 2025.
ODE already worked with ERM, together with NEL, Doosan, and Tractabel, during the pre-FEED phase.
ODE was acting as pre-FEED designer for the project’s topsides and Tractabel carried out sub-structure and turbine design. NEL brought in its hydrogen expertise and Doosan was chosen to analyze NEL’s proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser technology which is used on the project.
ERM Dolphyn combines electrolysis, desalination, and hydrogen production on a floating wind platform.
The project recently received GBP 8.6 million in funding for its demonstration phase from the UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) as part of the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio Low Carbon Hydrogen Supply 2 Competition.
“This support from the UK Government provides a welcome boost to the ERM Dolphyn project, as the hydrogen economy enters an exciting new phase of development. We are looking forward to working with ODE to deliver low-carbon hydrogen as part of the energy transition that will help the UK to achieve its net zero goals,” said David Caine , Partner at ERM.
Following the demonstration, a multi-gigawatt project could provide up to 25 per cent of the UK’s future low-carbon hydrogen demand in the 2030s.
“Producing clean, low-cost hydrogen at scale is widely recognised as a key enabler for the energy transition. With the potential to supply carbon-free energy to heat over 1.5 million homes, the ERM Dolphyn project will play a fundamental role in laying the path towards these goals,” said Frank Drennan , head of oil, gas, and energy transition for ODE
In March, ERM signed an agreement with Source Energie to jointly develop projects in the Celtic Sea that combine floating wind and green hydrogen production.
The first of these is planned to be developed at the 300 MW Dylan site, located approximately 60 kilometres off the Pembrokeshire coast, where the companies’ joint project is expected to be operational by the end of 2028.
Simply Blue Energy and Subsea 7 announced last year that they are looking at using ERM’s Dolphyn technology in their Salamander wind project off the coast of Peterhead.