A wide view of offshore wind turbines in a calm blue sea, beneath a clear sky.
Offshore solutions that enhance system flexibility / minimize curtailment

Innovation Competition

Offshore solutions to enhance system flexibility and minimize curtailment

RWE is one of the world's leading offshore wind companies, working with partners to deliver a globally ambitious growth pipeline in support of our ambition to be carbon neutral by 2040. As a market leader, we are dedicated to exploring and supporting innovative solutions that can accelerate the pace of deploying offshore wind, and are keen to explore specific research issues and pilot projects with companies, start-ups and individuals around the world.

RWE was seeking for innovative offshore solutions that enhance system flexibility and minimize curtailment by balancing the short- or long-term mismatch in time and volume between power supply and demand.

Winners of the 2022 Innovation Competition on System Integration

The Verlume logo features stylised green and blue lettering, conveying a modern aesthetic.

Verlume one of the two winners of Innovation System Integration Award

Verlume is bringing multi-purpose storage solutions offshore with a subsea lithium-ion battery, which has a modular and highly scalable design that will lead to a more balanced power output by shaving the peak power production offshore.

Beyond preventing grid curtailment, the battery can provide multiple offshore services, such as frequency response, black start capability for wind turbines and charging of hybrid or fully electric service vessels. This will enable to further reduce the CO2 footprint of offshore wind farms and associated logistics.

To website
A yellow battery container system with various connections and valves, marked with the name Verlume.
An illustration of an underwater wind farm featuring a ship, a platform, and cables.
A yellow hoisting device is being operated in a factory hall by several workers. The hall features a red roof and bright lighting.
Four individuals stand in front of a wall with 'Growing Green - Our way to 2030' text, shaking hands.
Three awards from RWE for the Innovation Competition 2022, recognising ARC Marine LTD, ForWind, and Verlume LTD.
Several individuals stand together in front of a wall with the slogan 'Growing Green – Our way to 2030'.

Logo of ForWind, Centre for Wind Energy Research, with locations in Bremen, Hannover, and Oldenburg.

ForWind, Wind Energy Research Center at the University of Oldenburg, one of the two winners of Innovation System Integration Award

ForWind, the Center for Wind Energy Research at the University of Oldenburg, was selected as winner for the development of an innovative lidar-based power forecasting methodology.

This method has the potential to significantly improve the integration of wind power in future energy systems by accurately predicting ramp rates of wind turbines and supporting grid stability. This can help with securing grid reliability during so called ramp events, sudden and strong changes in power caused by meteorological events leading to a significant drop or increase of supply. If not predicted accurately, both in timing and amplitude, these can result in critical grid imbalances.

To website
A view of offshore wind turbines from a platform, with blue sea and sky in the background.
A group of four individuals holding an award, standing in front of a wall with "Growing Green - Our way to 2030" text.
Three awards from RWE for the Innovation Competition 2022, recognising ARC Marine LTD, ForWind, and Verlume LTD.
A group of people posing in an RWE office, giving thumbs up. A green slogan is visible in the background.
A man in a dark blue suit stands in a modern office with large windows, portrait of Sven Utermöhlen.
“As one of the world's leading renewable energy companies, RWE promotes the pursuit of innovation in offshore wind energy. To support this ambition, we have launched this Innovation Competition to establish, in addition to our own expertise, refreshing new partnerships with resourceful people and companies. From a large number of high quality applications ARC Marine, Verlume and ForWind, the Center for Wind Energy Research at the University of Oldenburg, emerged as the winners. The winners have devised solutions that help to accelerate the energy transition by creating a positive impact on marine ecology and integrating offshore wind energy into the energy system. We strongly believe in working together in order to make a real difference for the future energy supply.”

Sven Utermöhlen, CEO RWE Offshore Wind GmbH

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