BlueFloat Energy has identified an exact location for the first phase of its Winds of September floating wind project off Hsinchu City, Taiwan, as the developer plans to enter Winds of September Phase 1 into the floating demonstration programme which the Taiwanese government is expected to launch later this year.
Winds of September Phase 1, located approximately 23 kilometres from Hsinchu City, in the area where BlueFloat wants to build the 1 GW Winds of September floating wind farm, would have up to 12 floating wind turbines and a total installed capacity of 180 MW.
If approved and built, the 180 MW project would become the first floating wind farm in Taiwan.
In connection with the development of Winds of September Phase 1, BlueFloat Energy has also signed a collaboration agreement with the Metal Industries Research & Development Centre (MIRDC) that will see the two parties performing an analysis of Taiwan’s manufacturing supply chain capacity for floating wind mooring and anchoring systems.
The partnership with MIRDC also aims to demonstrate the continuity between the demonstration programme and the future commercial stage of the Winds of September project.
Namely, through the first 180 MW phase, BlueFloat intends to deliver the adjustments in maritime engineering, port operations, and the supply chain early and make the project the foundation for Winds of September Phase 2 for participating in Taiwan’s Zonal Development R3-3 bidding round.
“The ultimate goal is to accomplish large-scale commercial development of floating technology in Taiwan in order to achieve the country’s offshore wind installation targets for 2035, as the potential for bottom-fixed projects is nearly exhausted”, BlueFloat Energy stated in a press release on 7 August.
The Winds of September project, including Phase 1, has been in development since 2021.
The developer has already conducted an energy yield assessment after a floating LiDAR was deployed at the site in March 2023.
Together with a comprehensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) process and geophysical surveys to assess key environmental constraints and soil conditions, these efforts have guided the selection and layout design of the project site, BlueFloat says.
In January this year, the company announced that its 1 GW Winds of September floating wind project passed the final Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) committee review.