The British consultancy firm Innosea, which specialises in offshore renewable energy, has decided to set up in Spain, attracted by a roadmap that envisages bringing between one and three gigawatts of floating wind energy to the market by 2030. The ABL subsidiary is the first in the group to arrive in Spain. The ABL Group itself has been involved in a project to bring floating solar energy to the Canary Islands.

Innosea was responsible for the engineering, design and R&D required to drive the renewable energy that can be produced at sea. The government's ambitious plan will be a major boost for floating wind technology. If the milestone of three gigawatts is achieved, 40% of European assets in this energy source in 2030 will be in Spain.

Strong market readiness
Another factor that has encouraged the company to expand into Spain has been strong market readiness, with one of the largest offshore wind supply chains in Europe. Basically, ABL could not miss the opportunity to set up in a country that has installed 28,000 megawatts of onshore wind energy in the last few decades and that expects growth of31% by 2030, while solar energy will grow by 22%.

Although the company will focus on offshore energy, such as floating solar and wave and tidal energy, it does not rule out taking part in onshore projects. In addition to wind and solar energy, its engineering and consulting expertise covers other specialities, such as hydrogen and energy storage.

Engineering and design solutions
Geotechnical and geophysical engineer Jordi Serret will head the Spanish office in Barcelona. A senior consultant specialising in floating offshore wind technology, he also has significant experience in engineering and design solutions for floating  solar energy and energy storage.

Innosea's CEO, Hakim Mouslim, explained, "After our expansion into the French renewable energy market, applying our expertise to help our Spanish neighbour reach its climate targets is the next logical step, especially considering its clear intentions to go into offshore wind energy. Our team already includes several Spanish consultants and engineers who know the local market well. This new presence means we can provide even more personalised local support to customers in the field."

For his part, ABL Group's Managing Director of Renewables, William Cleverly, stated, "We are excited to reaffirm our commitment to the region as it looks to accelerate its journey towards zero emissions, and Jordi has the perfect combined geoscience and marine engineering profile to provide early-stage support to customers in this market."

^{Photo: Innosea}