Technip Energies, in partnership with Université Gustave Eiffel, Valeco, and OPEN-C Foundation, will be leading the PAREF project, an R&D program aimed at accelerating industrial-scale development of floating wind.
This project is funded by the French State as part of France 2030 operated by ADEME. It aims to design, fabricate, and test a reusable anchoring system, high and low connectors, and tendons for a tension line system, all while minimizing the impact on the marine environment in real offshore conditions.
The PAREF project will provide the anchoring system for the NextFloat project. In 2022, Technip Energies, X1 Wind, and a consortium of 10 international entities were chosen by the European Commission to deliver the NextFloat project. The integrated system includes X1 Wind’s innovative and disruptive floating wind technology, featuring a lighter floater design with a reduced steel requirement, plus a compact mooring system minimizing seabed impact. The 6MW prototype will be deployed at a test site in the Mediterranean Sea to operate the concept in open-sea operational conditions.
The PAREF project is a significant step towards achieving a competitive and sustainable integrated floating offshore wind solution optimized for deep waters, significantly reducing cost and accelerating industrial-scale deployment. The NextFloat platform will provide the means to test the PAREF foundation system in situ for a minimum of two years.