Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised floating wind expert BlueFloat Energy on the formation of its new partnership with onshore wind community engagement pioneer Falck Renewables (“Falck”) and world-leading Danish offshore wind developer Ørsted to participate in the upcoming ScotWind leasing round. This new consortium will apply for seabed leases in sites which lend themselves to the deployment of large-scale floating wind technology.
Launched in June 2020, ScotWind is the first Scottish offshore wind leasing programme managed by Crown Estate Scotland and includes up to 15 areas amounting to 10 GW of capacity across 17 sites. Bids for lease options are due this month, with award of option agreements expected in Q1 2022.
Combining as it does BlueFloat Energy’s unique experience in developing, financing and executing floating wind projects, Ørsted’s unrivalled expertise in the offshore wind sector and Falck’s track record in both global project development and community engagement in Scotland in particular, the consortium is well placed to deliver world-class floating offshore projects.
Madrid-headquartered BlueFloat Energy was founded by a team of floating offshore wind pioneers with extensive knowledge and hands-on experience in executing floating offshore wind projects. Founded in Milan in 2002, Falck is an independent renewable energy power producer focussing on the development and operation of wind, solar, biomass and waste-to-energy assets primarily in western Europe and United States. Denmark’s Ørsted, who pioneered the first ever offshore wind farm in 1991, has developed and built more offshore wind projects than any other company in the world.
Unlike more traditional bottom-fixed offshore wind technology, where the turbine is mounted on top of a structure fixed to the seabed, floating wind projects use a floating foundation anchored to the seabed by mooring lines, allowing projects to be sited in deeper waters further away from the coast.
The WFW London team that advised BlueFloat Energy was led by Projects Partner Emmanuel Ninos, working closely with Corporate Partner Chris Kilburn and Corporate Associate Jennifer Evans.
Emmanuel commented: “We’re delighted to have advised BlueFloat Energy on this important agreement with such major industry players as Ørsted and Falck in the dynamic floating wind space. The success of this agreement highlights the commitment of the industry’s leading players to developing floating offshore wind technology and reinforces WFW’s standing as the ‘go to’ legal advisers in this expanding area”.
