Saipem signs MoU for 450-MW offshore wind farm in Italy

Italian oil and gas contractor Saipem SpA (BIT:SPM) announced today it has joined a 450-MW offshore wind project near the coast of Ravenna, Italy.

The company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project with Adriatic Sea renewables developer AGNES Srl and clean energy firm QINT'X Holding Srl. The partners seek to install about 56 turbines on fixed foundations in the Adriatic Sea at two locations -- one more than eight nautical miles from the coast, and the other more than 12 miles from the shore. They have plans to also deploy innovative energy technologies like floating solar and green hydrogen production at sea.

This combination of technologies forms the name of the initiative -- the Adriatic green network of energy sources (AGNES).

“This project will be implemented in a highly industrialised area and the local industry will be involved in supporting it,” Saipem said the Tuesday’s release. It added that it also intends to launch similar projects in Sicily and Sardinia, but with floating foundations for the wind turbines, through its XSIGHT division which is the one in charge of developing innovative solutions.

A year ago, Saipem and renewables investor Plambeck Emirates LLC tied up to develop what is expected to be Saudi Arabia’s first floating offshore wind farm -- a 500-MW complex in the Persian Gulf.

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!