Cornish company looking to expand into US following investment
An American firm which backs off-shore wind companies has invested in a South West company.
Tugdock has developed the world’s first road-transportable floating dock. And US firm Crowley has made its second investment in the business with the aim of advancing offshore wind energy in the U.S.
Crowley, a supply chain solutions company, serves the offshore wind sector, and Tugdock will explore potential use of the platforms in locations, such as the US West Coast.
“This important investment and collaboration with Tugdock strategically complement our vision and market-leading logistics capabilities to support wind energy development from beginning to end,” said Bob Karl, senior vice president and general manager, Crowley Wind Services.
“Not only will we help installation developers solve logistics challenges, as a leader in sustainable and innovative maritime logistics Crowley will further the use of offshore wind as a leading alternative energy source by working together with our customers, suppliers, policymakers and others across our value chain for innovations like the Tugdock Submersible Platform.”
Crowley Wind Services is developing and planning for wind terminals in California, Louisiana and Massachusetts.
“We are delighted to form a new partnership with Crowley, a visionary company at the forefront of marine innovation,” said Shane Carr, chief executive of Tugdock, which is based in Cornwall.
“Their strategic investment will enable us to take our unique technology to the US floating offshore wind market for the first time. We believe that our new partnership will help accelerate the growth of floating offshore wind in the U.S.”
TSPs were developed to be launched in ports that lack the sufficient water depth and assembly space required to build and loadout the massive floating substructures required to support offshore wind turbines.
The technology allows floating dry docks to be delivered by road in modular form and assembled at the port to dimensions far wider than most of the world’s existing dry docks. Once loaded, the platform is then towed to deeper water for launching and transporting the turbines.
“The cost and time constraints associated with port infrastructure developments and submersible barge suitability are major bottlenecks holding back growth of the floating offshore wind sector,” said Lucas Lowe-Houghton, Director of Strategy and Growth at Tugdock.
“Our TSP technology helps overcome these issues, providing a ready-to-go solution that does not require planning or environmental permissions. This is a massive benefit as planning permission for a permanent facility could significantly delay project schedules and not provide a return on investment. Tugdock provides a purpose-built permanent or temporary pre-assembly solution for construction and loadout, wind turbine generator integrations and major repair campaigns.”
