Ørsted acquires 80% stake in 100-MW floating wind development project in UK

Ørsted A/S acquired an 80% stake in the 100-MW Salamander floating offshore wind development project on the Scottish coast.

The company said April 6 that it entered a joint venture with Simply Blue Group and Subsea 7 for the floating wind farm. The Salamander project is expected to help floating wind technology get a head start in becoming more cost competitive as it transitions from demonstration projects to utility scale, the company said.

Salamander, designed as a stepping stone for floating wind technology, is intended to progress through the Crown Estate Scotland's Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas, or INTOG, leasing round later this year. INTOG will grant seabed leases through an auction process, with one for smaller scale innovation projects of less than 100 MW and another for larger projects linked to oil and gas infrastructure.

Ørsted said exclusivity agreements for successful projects are expected to be awarded in the fall, with option agreements signed the following year.

Green Giraffe acted as adviser to Simply Blue Group and Subsea 7 on the joint venture with Ørsted.

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