Local Offshore Wind Entrepreneur Receives Traction Assistance From Ståle Kyllingstad – E24

– We don’t want to come up with exact figures for this investment, but after this, IKM will have almost 17 percent ownership in Flexible Floating System AS, says division director Øystein Stjern at IKM Gruppen to Aftenbladet. It also confirms that it is a millionaire investment.

The very special technology is now one step closer to realization. If it really happens, it involves investments in the billions.

– Great possibilities

– We have worked with this for several years, but commercially it is a great advance. Still, some steps need to be taken before it becomes commercial, but this looks very promising, Einar Sundal tells Aftenbladet.

Sundal is the man and inventor behind the Flexifloat concept. He works at Rosenberg Worley in Stavanger, but developed and patented the offshore wind energy concept at his own company; Flexible floating system AS. In June last year, Aftenbladet had a major report with Sundal, where he demonstrated the concept of the floating offshore wind farm at home in the garden.

Two years had passed since the inventor made a makeshift pool at home in the garden and filled it with water. Every now and then a neighbor would poke his head out and wonder what it was. Sundal put the model with wind turbines in the pool and pulled the mat to simulate waves. Excitingly, they agreed that it was.

But the test results were beyond exciting. They were also so promising that Sundal decided to go ahead with the plans.

The entire offshore wind structure consists of cubes of 30 by 30 meters that are joined in chains. For the prototype, Sundal has taken as a starting point that the structure is 420 meters low and 240 meters wide with nine wind turbines per structure.

In short, the concept gives stability to size and flexibility gives strength. This means that we have much lower production costs than traditional offshore wind turbines. The plant lies like a blanket on the sea and rests elastically on the waves. It’s not just about wind, but also great opportunities for wave energy and solar energy utilization by installing solar panels in large areas, Sundal explains.

Rosenberg in the driver’s seat

Rosenberg Worley is also on the team. Therefore, the shipyard has the exclusive rights to use the Flexifloat technology. Therefore, IKM is now entering into a cooperation agreement with Rosenberg Worley AS to assist Rosenberg in the technology development phase, as well as in the long term also deliveries of relevant products and services after commercialization.

– IKM and Rosenberg currently have a good collaboration in several areas. That this can now also include renewable energy sources is very gratifying, says Rosenberg director Jan Narvestad in a press release.

Current technology for the Flexifloat offshore wind energy concept is based on placing 9 wind turbines on a large floating steel base. The foundation is 420 meters long and 240 meters wide, and is made up of flexible steel cubes that allow the structure to move over the sea like a blanket.

– In this way, construction plays as a team with the forces at sea. This means lower foundation costs per turbine and a very promising calculation for the concept, says Knut Høiland. Leads concept development at Rosenberg.

Øystein Stjern at IKM highlights that this project fits perfectly into the restructuring that is now taking place in the district.

– It is exciting for us that the engineering community in the petroleum service is directly contributing to the development of alternative energy solutions, says Stjern.

IKM owner Ståle Kyllingstad is also positive.

– We are convinced that offshore wind energy is an area where IKM can provide technology and solutions for the future, it states in a press release.

Over the past 30 years, we have gained considerable experience in the design, construction and operation of marine structures that are relevant to this particular area.

Tested in Denmark

The way forward is the group test of a smaller model of the plant in Denmark in early 2021.

Also, demonstration facilities where it is set in an ocean environment. The further development phase is financed with own funds, with the support of Sundal’s own company, Rosenberg, IKM and Innovation Norway, the Research Council, Vri Rogaland and Validé.

– Before any commercialization, we must verify that the plant can remain outdoors in large waves and strong winds. It should be realistic that we start in 2022 with a demo installation. The trial period is about a year before a final conclusion can be drawn, Sundal says.

– Are you getting rich now?

– A little difficult to say. The potential is there. We have sold it to Rosenberg, who has an exclusive license agreement to build it. It will not be the same as if we had owned everything ourselves. But the concept as such has much greater possibilities than just energy. We can imagine additional effects on other industries such as aquaculture and aquaculture in the vicinity. There are exciting opportunities here and we have great faith in future development, says Sundal.