Singapore’s marine and offshore firms explore overseas markets to seize wind energy opportunities

OFFERING EXPERTISE OVERSEAS

By 2030, the international offshore wind industry is set to be worth about US$126 billion. Key growth markets include the United States, Europe, South Korea, Vietnam, and Australia. 

In Europe, in particular, the green transition is among the top priorities of governments, which have set out ambitious plans with large projects in the pipeline, said Mr Yeo. 

Among the Singapore firms hoping to make waves in overseas markets is mooring solutions specialist Mooreast, which helps to anchor wind farms to the seabed among other deep-sea operations. 

Mr Barry Silver, managing director at Mooreast UK and Ireland, said the work involves large and heavy equipment. 

“It’s not something you can move particularly easily, so therefore, it’s very important that we have proximity to port infrastructure,” he added. 

“About 60 to 70 per cent of the floating offshore wind fields are within close proximity.”

Cyan Renewables is a Singapore-based offshore wind vessel operations firm providing boats to conduct seabed inspections before a wind farm is built. These vessels survey sea beds and ensure biodiversity is protected under the sea, among other tasks. 

The firm is looking to leverage on its track record and experience in Europe, said the firm’s CEO Lee Keng Lin.

“When our customers are in Asia, which is a fast growing area, we are able to leverage the expertise, adapt to the local requirements and the local constraints, and develop solutions which are cost effective for them.”

For instance, Japan is looking at offshore wind projects to power 10 gigawatts of power by 2030.

Closer to Singapore, Vietnam aims to have a domestic offshore wind capacity of about 6 gigawatts.