1. Neart na Gaoithe O&M Base Design and Delivery
Generating Better worked as part of the Neart na Gaoithe Project Development Team and led work to select the location for the O&M base and design the facilities required. We ran a port tender process and visited candidate ports to inform them of project requirements. Eyemouth Harbour was selected to host the O&M facilities and we worked with them to select an area of land that was suitable. We worked closely with Edf’s Legal Department to identify and close out the required legal agreements and ensure robust long term use of the area selected. The harbour is a conservation area and tourist destination and we worked closely with designers, planning consultants, Harbour Commissioners and the local authority to create a design which was right for the location and create excellent facilities to host the O&M team. We involved Siemens, as a long term contractor to the project, in the design process to ensure the building also met their needs. Pontoon and quayside layout was progressed alongside the design of the offices and warehouse to ensure an integrated approach to the design, eliminating H&S issues and maximising productivity. We managed the design process to the point of issuing tenders for the construction of the building and the design and construction of the pontoons, quayside cranes and fuel tank.
2. Industry Best Practice to Improve the Use of Jack-ups for O&M Tasks
In the early stages of the offshore wind sector development, Generating Better were commissioned by The Crown Estate to work with the UK Offshore Wind O&M community to optimise and improve the use of jack-up vessels for main component replacement during the operational phase. We worked with operational teams to understand reasons for delays in deploying jack-up vessels and brought together site-based O&M staff, an expert marine warranty surveyor and jack-up charter companies to identify ways to make the selection, charter and use of jack-ups more efficient and reduce delays. Options for developing a shared use model were explored but the variation in seabed conditions and differences in water depths made this too challenging for the sites that were in operation at the time. Training sessions were held for O&M staff to improve awareness and guidance document was written. A report was produced and published by The Crown Estate and it can be downloaded here.
3. Supporting Seabed Lease Acquisition
Generating Better supported Mainstream Renewable Power in the preparation of bid documents for the Scotwind Seabed Lease round which ultimately resulted in them obtaining a lease off the coast of Shetland. We developed conceptual O&M Strategies for the sites selected. We identified port facilities as a high risk for an initial site selected during desktop studies and undertook site visits to identify practical options and de-risk the project proposal. As a result of this work we identified several viable options included developing a Memorandum of Understanding for a shared facility in Oban harbour. We also undertook early engagement with potential ports and helped them to understand the opportunities that a future project could present. Generating Better prepared an O&M organisation plan and developed a detailed OPEX model which fed into the project Financial Model. Areas of land were identified which could support a local O&M base and concept sketches were developed and included in the final bid.