SUT-US OSIG presents: Seabed Considerations for Subsea Cables in Offshore Wind Development - Session 1 - Society for Underwater Technology in the U.S.

SUT-US OSIG presents: Seabed Considerations for Subsea Cables in Offshore Wind Development - Session 1

Starts: Tue, Apr 8, 2025 8:00 AM CST
Ends: Tue, Apr 8, 2025 11:00 AM CST
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Join Us for an Exciting Virtual Workshop! The Offshore Site Investigation and Geotechnics Committee (OSIG) is pleased to invite you to the virtual workshop titled "Seabed Considerations for Subsea Cables in Offshore Wind Development". This online webinar comprises two sessions featuring twelve presentations from industry leaders and academic experts, with six speakers at each session. The workshop will provide the audience with broad insights into geophysical and geotechnical site survey strategies, cable routing considerations, scour and cable burial risk assessment methodologies, shore crossings, and cable design and installation. Registrants will have access to video recordings and presentation materials. Additionally, SUT will offer Certificates for Professional Development Hours (PDH) available upon request.

If you are interested in sponsoring this event, see flyer at the bottom of the page and contact Mariana Diaz mdiaz@sut-us.org

Webinar Session 1 Program:

8:00AM- 8:05AM CST	Welcome and introduction Dr. Zack Westgate - Associate Professor, UMass Amherst - SUT-US OSIG Chair
8:05AM- 8:25AM CST	Framing site investigations strategies for offshore wind cables Dr. Elizabeth Andrews, Avangrid With planned cable routes often changing over the course of an offshore wind farm’s development timeline, defining a robust and cost effective approach to Site Investigations data acquisition can be a challenge. This session will introduce the key drivers for geoscience data collection on offshore wind cable routes and reflect on the ways in which they influence site investigation strategy as well as larger project decisions.
8:25AM- 8:45AM CST	Archaeological Considerations for Offshore Cable Routing Kim Faulk, Geosyntec Consultans/GEMS Offshore cable routing requires input and expertise from numerous disciplines including marine archaeologists. Geophysical data collected for shallow hazard purposes, and geotechnical cores can provide critical data to marine archaeologists who are analyzing the data for potential paleo archaeological landforms and sites, as well as historical sites. Current regulatory guidance and requirements from state and federal agencies provide a context for how the surveys should be conducted, but marine archaeologists will use the data to assess the likelihood for site that need to be avoided or mitigated prior to construction and operation of offshore energy projects. The presentation will provide context for why marine archaeologists are working in the offshore energy sector, what expertise they can provide to the project to help mitigate non-technical risk, and the potential for unexpected archaeological discoveries on your next offshore project.
8:45AM- 9:05AM CST	Supervised Autonomous Geophysical and Offshore Power Cable Route Surveys for Offshore Wind Energy Development Shayan Haque/Moisan Oliver - Exail The offshore wind industry relies on a limited number of highly specialized vessels to support various subsea cable operations, including pre-lay surveys, cable installation, inspection, surveillance, reconnaissance, and monitoring of critical infrastructure. These operations come with significant time and financial costs. In response to the growing demand for efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable solutions, Exail has identified that a family of Uncrewed Surface Vehicles (USVs), equipped with advanced sensors and navigation systems, can effectively address the needs of the industry. By leveraging USVs, the offshore wind sector can reduce financial and operational risks, minimize delays, and lower carbon impacts associated with cable infrastructure development and maintenance. This presentation will explore such survey operations already conducted in Europe and in the United States, highlighting their potential to transform cable route operations for the industry.
9:05AM- 9:25AM CST	Q&A Session Dr. Ryan Beemer - Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Virginia Tech
9:25AM- 9:40AM CST	Break
9:40AM- 10:00AM CST	Automated Power Cable Routing Optimization based on a Geo-Risk Approach James Fisher, Fugro The cost of offshore power cables is a significant factor in the development of offshore wind projects. These costs, which are on the order of magnitude of approximately 1 to 2 million USD per kilometer, underscore the importance of cable routing planning and design. Geological and geotechnical desktop studies provide crucial early information for decision-making in cable routing. These studies integrate available data to create a preliminary model of the geological, geotechnical, metocean, anthropogenic, and other conditions, which can be used for initial feasibility assessments of cable routes. This presentation will focus on the use of desktop study geo-data in preliminary cable feasibility assessments using an automated routing tool to optimize cable routing. The least geo-cost routing optimization utilizes the key inputs of geo-constraints, potential routing start and end points, and cable parameters (e.g., maximum radius of curvature) to output the least-geocost cable routes. These preliminary routes can be utilized for planning of site-specific surveys, as well as updated (micro-routing) based on the cable corridor surveys.
10:00AM- 10:20AM CST	Biodiversity Considerations for Offshore Wind Power Cables Dr. Sarah Courbis, Worley Consulting The deployment of offshore wind will require the installation of power cables that connect the turbines to each other and to offshore substations, cross over onto land, and connect to onshore substations before conversion for transmission to energy recipients. For fixed wind, these cables are often run to the seafloor and buried. For floating wind, they may be buried or may be in the mid-water depending on depths and logistics. Cables laid on or buried beneath the seafloor can cause disturbance and may have both positive and negative implications for biodiversity. Studies to date suggest that power cable sheathing and burial reduces electromagnetic fields, heat, and vibration that may attract or repel organisms. There are a variety of nature-based solutions for biodiversity enhancement for cables buried or covered on the seafloor. Further, cables are a potentially valuable tool for data transfer and collection, such as distributed acoustic monitoring. This presentation will provide information about potential beneficial and adverse effects of offshore wind cables on biodiversity and the opportunities for reducing recovery time after disturbance and enhancing biodiversity through planning and innovation.
10:20AM- 10:40AM CST	Cable Installation in Glacial Deposits – A Dogger Bank Case Study Niels Noordijk, Van Oord As offshore wind projects planned further offshore and into more challenging ground conditions, the burial of inter-array and export cables in heterogeneous soils becomes increasingly necessary. This demands versatile burial methodologies and powerful equipment. Along the US East Coast and in the North Sea, this often involves dealing with highly variable glacial deposits. This presentation will showcase a case study of a wind farm on Dogger Bank, illustrating how a cable installation contractor tackles these challenges. We will cover the entire process, from the initial geological assessment of the site to the selection of burial equipment and the actual cable burial. Additionally, we will share insights from the contractor's perspective, showing the complexities involved in offshore cable installation.
10:40AM- 11:00AM CST	Q&A Session Dr. Ryan Beemer - Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Virginia Tech

Presenters:

	Dr. Elizabeth Andrews Dr. Elizabeth Dewing Andrews is the Director of Offshore Development for Avangrid Renewables. She has a doctorate in geospatial analysis in maritime archaeology from University of Southampton, UK and over 13 years of industry experience in offshore wind. She has previously held roles as lead geophysicist for offshore survey contractor, EGSi, for Ørsted in their UK/EU and US portfolios and, most recently, for Avangrid Renewables where she also supported their geotechnical discipline. In her current role, she integrates her technical background with management of project permitting, siting, business case and pathway to market considerations.
	Kim Faulk Ms. Faulk, Principal and Senior Marine Archaeologist, Geoscience Earth & Marine Services (GEMS) / Geosyntec Consultans. She has over 25 years of experience in marine archaeology, and more than 20 years of experience in offshore energy. She has extensive experience setting up, managing, and executing offshore geophysical and geotechnical surveys in both shallow and deep-water environments. Ms. Faulk has worked with clients and survey companies defining geophysical and geotechnical scopes of work that accommodate the location, vessel, budget, water depth, and project needs.
	Shayan Haque Mr. Shayan Haque is the offshore wind Business Development Manager at Exail North America, leading Exail’s growth efforts in this market in the U.S. For the past several years, Shayan has been promoting early adoption of a new concept of operation with Exail’s DriX USV and remotely operated towed vehicles, as well as other geophysical and marine biomass assessment solutions for wind farms.
	Moisan Oliver Mr. Olivier joined iXblue Sea Operation Division in 2015 as project engineer. With a hydrographic and geophysical engineering background, Olivier took part in diverse survey projects, including windfarm, dredging, nautical charting and oil/gas.
	Dr. Ryan Beemer Dr. Beemer is an Assistant Professor in geotechnical engineering at the Virginia Tech University. He earned his PhD from Texas A&M University in 2016 and completed his postdoctoral studies in the Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems at the University of Western Australia. His research includes the mechanics of calcareous and glauconite sediments, deployable geosystems, and offshore foundations and anchoring systems. He is currently a Member of the Society Technology’s Offshore Site Investigation and Geotechnics and the Marine Renewable Energy Committees.
	James Fisher Mr. Fisher has over 15 years of professional experience as an engineering geologist and consultant for marine infrastructure projects, specializing in geoscience and geotechnical engineering. His extensive project experience spans the offshore renewable energy industry, oil and gas industry, and transportation/infrastructure sector on a global scale. He has successfully completed projects in Australia, Southeast Asia, Africa, Canada, Europe, South America, and the US Atlantic, Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico, and Pacific regions, which includes leading integrated geophysical and geotechnical projects (site investigations and characterizations) for offshore developments, geohazard assessments, ground model development, and geological studies. He holds an M.S. in Engineering Geology from Kent State University (Kent, Ohio) and a B.S. in Geophysics from SUNY Fredonia (Fredonia, New York).
	Dr. Sarah Courbis Dr. Sarah Courbis has been working in marine science and regulation for over 25 years. She focuses on marine protected species and habitats and specializes in impact assessment, permitting and compliance, and mitigation. She is a senior scientist with Worley Consulting. Her work in offshore energy includes Construction and Operations Plans, NEPA documentation and consultations, siting and planning, agency and stakeholder engagement, development of practicable mitigation, MMPA authorizations, CZMA consistency, and public comment support for organizations. In addition to work in offshore wind, she has supported environmental assessment and compliance for LNG, seismic, fisheries, coastal development, tidal and wave energy, and oil and gas projects.
	Niels Noordijik Niels is a senior geological engineer within Van Offshore Energy, working on offshore wind projects. His expertise spans offshore site investigations, geological modelling, offshore cable installation and trenching equipment. He has been involved in many of the offshore wind projects Van Oord has constructed over the last ten years. Niels focuses on cable burial, ensuring a correct understanding of the site conditions, the selection, development, and use of burial equipment to meet burial requirements. He holds an MSc in Applied Earth Sciences from Delft University of Technology.
	Dr. Zack Westgate Dr. Westgate is an Associate Professor of Geotechnical Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a registered professional civil engineer with 18 years of experience consulting in the offshore energy sector, currently as a Principal Engineer with the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute. He has published on topics relating to site characterization, soil mechanics, offshore foundation engineering, pipeline/riser geotechnics, and most recently on the geotechnical behavior of glauconite sands. He is currently Chair of the SUT-US Offshore Site Investigations and Geotechnics committee, and serves on other industry committees focused on offshore energy.