A floating cable connection 38 for an offshore structure (12, Fig 3) such as a floating wind turbine comprises elongate rigid tubes 48, each defining an internal passageway that accommodates a respective cable 14. Support formations 46 hold the tubes in an upright orientation on the structure but allow the tubes to be lifted from the structure and into the surrounding water. Buoyancy elements 58 external to the tubes generate enough buoyant upthust to support the connection and the upper end portions of the cables at the surface of a body of water 22, with other portions of the cables suspended beneath the floating connection. A method of disconnecting a cable from an offshore structure and supporting an upper portion of the cable at the surface of the water using a floating cable connection is also disclosed.
Handling Cables in Offshore Installations
25.10.2023
Patent
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch