KNOC, Equinor unveil new floating offshore wind farm in South Korea

Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC), a South Korean state-owned firm and Equinor, a Norwegian oil company concurred to enter the South Korean offshore wind market.

The two firms signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to venture into the renewable energy industry in lieu of nuclear and coal energy sources. They are planning to explore commercial floating offshore wind, which can increase renewable energy consumption up to 20% to 49GW of renewable energy by 2030.A 200 MW floating offshore wind project will be developed by the agreement at Donghae platform 58 km off the coast of Ulsan City.

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“South Korea has large potential and offers attractive opportunities within offshore wind. We look forward to evaluate how we can further expand our portfolio within offshore wind and contribute to develop renewable energy solutions in South Korea,” said Stephen Bull, Senior Vice President for wind and low carbon in Equinor’s New Energy Solutions business.

Senior Vice President at KNOC, Jae-Heon Shim added that the MoU is crucial for advancing Korea’s practical steps in developing floating offshore wind farms. He also said that the firms are focused on the feasibility study of the project.

In mid-2018, Equinor partnered with Masdar (Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company) to operate the world’s first full-scale floating offshore wind farm in Scotland, the Hywind Scotland. Equinor also operates Sheringham Shoal, Dungeon offshore wind farms and Germany wind farm with German utility firm, E.ON. All of these wind farms can provide more than 1 million homes with renewable power.

Meanwhile, KNOC supports the aspiration of South Korean government to invest more on renewable energy source to ensure the country’s energy security. Currently, the state-owned firm is focused on developing offshore wind ventures.