Moorings system redundancy, reliability and integrity
Mooring systems are a crucial component of a floating offshore wind asset. The assessment of
reliability and failure for floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) mooring systems has traditionally been
drawn from sectors like Oil & Gas (O&G), where historical data indicates mooring failure rates are
relatively high.
In comparison to traditional floating marine assets, the FOWT mooring system will
experience increased and varying loading due to the effect of the turbine. This, and the additional loads
due to ever-increasing turbine sizes, are leading to high uncertainties surrounding project risk. To
mitigate the risk of potential mooing line failures, higher levels of redundancy and/or conservatism may
be incorporated in the mooring system design, resulting in increased capital expenditure (CAPEX) and
operational expenditure (OPEX).
This high level of conservatism will be difficult to introduce in commercial-scale floating wind, as large numbers
of mooring lines are required for multiple units, potentially making the mooring system commercially unviable.
This Moorings System Redundancy, Reliability & Integrity (MRR&I) project was delivered by a consortium
led by AMOG, with sowento, Peak Wind and Offspring International, which provides both floating wind
and O&G experience. The project, delivered through the Floating Wind Joint Industry Programme (JIP),
investigated if high failure rates seen in other sectors should be applied to floating offshore wind. It
sought to understand and identify how the industry can quantify potential floating wind-specific failures
within project planning.
