Connected Offshore | Green Energy News

December 1, 2002 – Vol.7 No.36

CONNECTED OFFSHORE.

If ocean energy eventually becomes a major player in renewable energy who already has the most experience in offshore energy and could be the most helpful? The offshore drilling companies of course.

BP, Alstom Power, ABB and others involved in offshore drilling have met to discuss the the growing idea of building undersea electrical transmission grids. These grids if built in places like the North Sea and the Gulf of Mexico could bring power from shore to operate drilling platforms, connect platforms to each other for more efficient use of power generation, or pump electricity generated on the platforms using ordinarily flared off surplus gas back to shore for sale on the mainland grid

Fuel cells and gas turbines are under consideration as power generators on the platforms. But once in place the grids could support all kinds of renewable power generation such as offshore wind or Richard Ayre’s tidal power generators.

Zeus Development Corporation is in the early stages of leading a research project to investigate the development of undersea power grids and held a meeting this week to discuss them. Visit Zeus at http://www.zeusdevelopment.com/ (click Remote Gas Strategies).