South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has announced plans to enter the renewables market with the development of a large-scale floating wind turbine.

The shipbuilder has received an Approval in Principle (AiP) from classification society DNV for its Tri-Star Float, a 9.5-MW offshore wind floater.

SHI is hoping its turbine technology will be selected for the 200MW Donghae 1 floating wind project off Ulsan, South Korea, in the East Sea near KNOC-operated Donghae natural gas field. The project is being developed by a consortium involving Korea National Oil Corporation, Korea East-West Power (EWP) and Equinor with construction expected to start in 2022, with possible power production start-up in 2024.

SHI said the floating turbines’ compact design will help shorten the construction period, reducing the time from design and construction to installation. SHI has been working on the floater model turbine design since October 2020 and recently completed water tank model testing at Korea Research Institute of Ships & Ocean Engineering (KRISO).

“The offshore floater will enable us to make forays into the renewable energy sector using our capacity to build large-scale offshore plants. We hope our development is aligned with the government’s Green New Deal Policy,” said Wang K. Lee, Vice President of Offshore Business Division of SHI.

Samsung Heavy Industries Eyes Entry in Renewables Market with Floating Wind Turbine Design