A consortium of Tractebel, Jan De Nul Group, DEME, Soltech and Ghent University is proud to announce the launch of an innovative project in the field of marine floating solar technology. The partners strongly believe that solar photovoltaic (PV) panels in offshore waters are one of the essential future green energy sources. Combined in the same location with aquaculture and offshore wind power, this innovative technology allows for a more efficient use of available space.
High-wave offshore solar technology as a logical step in the energy market
While solar PV technology costs are still constantly decreasing, the evolution towards high-wave offshore applications is a logical next step after fresh water floating PV on lakes and dams and low-wave offshore applications in lagoons and other sheltered environments. Factors such as land scarcity, large scale standardization and NIMBY impact are indeed expected to support the growth of the offshore solar energy market as they did for the wind energy. More generally, this expansion can be seen as a step towards the further development of the so-called Blue Economy, driving concepts such as cities on the water, offshore energy hubs, etc.
A challenging environment
Taking solar technology to rough offshore environment needs the existing solar PV panels to be adapted to resist salty water and withstand strong currents and wave action. In addition, a cost competitive concept for the floater structure should be designed. Finally, ecosystem integration of the floating PV panels will be investigated from the start, to minimise the impact as much as possible.
A consortium with a proven track record
The consortium partners will bring together all required skills and expertise to make this innovative project a real success. While Tractebel has built up strong engineering skills in both PV technology and offshore engineering, DEME and Jan De Nul Group are highly experienced in marine operations and involved in numerous windfarm developments and installations. Soltech is an expert in specialised solar PV panels and Ghent University is one of the leading knowledge centers in offshore engineering, aquaculture and ecosystem research.
A joint industry and government initiative
The consortium, led by Tractebel, was set up in the framework of the Flemish Blue Cluster and is strongly supported by VLAIO. For this initiative, the budget of about
A pioneering solution
The partners of the consortium are the first in Belgium to explore this pioneering offshore solar solution. Their ambition is also to be the first to realise offshore solar farms in the Belgian North Sea – eventually in combination with windfarms or aquaculture. In this way, the partners position themselves in this new, fast-evolving market.
Denis Lohest, CEO of Tractebel in Belgium:
Luc Vandenbulcke, CEO of DEME:
Philippe Hutse, Offshore Director at Jan De Nul Group:
Stefan Dewallef, Product Development Manager at Soltech:
Dr. ir. Margriet Drouillon, Senior Business Developer at Ghent University: & Development in marine / maritime sciences and Blue Growth in general. With the Laboratory of Aquaculture, the Environmental Toxicology Unit and the Maritime Technology Division, we have three expert research groups in their field participating in the project.