Floating Offshore Wind Fabrication Plant Takes Shape in Norway

Swiss construction company Implenia and Norway’s Windworks Jelsa have signed an agreement to develop a production and assembly facility for large concrete or steel structures for floating offshore wind sector on Norway’s West Coast.

The ambition of the project is to transform a quarry at Jesla in Norway’s Suldal Municipality into a large industrial plant for production and assembly of floating wind turbines. The project has been in the works since 2020 when Windworks Jesla was established by NorSea, Suldal Municipality and Ryfylke IKS, with Norsk Stein as a partner. 

Under the new agreement, Implenia and NorSea become equal minority shareholders in Windworks Jesla with approximately 41 percent each.

Implenia became involved with Windworks Jesla last year after signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU). Implenia offered to contribute its technical knowledge in site design and planning, project strategy and marketing.

The project will be implemented in several phases from 2023 to 2032, resulting in a production and assembly area of 800,000 square meters. This includes warehouse and workshops, specifically developed launching facilities and heavy-duty quays.

During the first phase of “pre-production” lasting from 2023 to 2026, Implenia committed to making two small investment tranches in 2023 and 2024.

When the project is complete, Windworks intends to build floating wind turbines with a total capacity of one gigawatt per year on Norway’s West Coast.

The Norwegian government is expected to grant first concessions for offshore wind in December. The goal is to allocate coastal areas for 30 GW by 2040.