UM launches collaborative project to cut fuel use during FOWT towing

The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Malta has officially launched TowFOWT - an innovative research project aimed at reducing the environmental impact of deploying floating offshore wind turbines.

Project TowFOWT [Development of a Drag Reduction Fairing to Reduce Fuel Consumption during Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Towing] is financed by Xjenza Malta and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China (MOST), through the SINO-MALTA Fund 2025 Call (Science and Technology Cooperation).

The project is being undertaken in collaboration with leading institutions in China:

• the Beijing Institute of Technology
• Tianjin University and 
• the China Ship Scientific Research Centre.

The University of Malta research team includes Prof. Christopher Micallef, Prof. Tonio Sant, Dr Jean Paul Mollicone, and researchers Martina Zammit and Nathaniel Scerri.

Floating wind technology is key to harnessing Malta’s offshore wind resources, which are predominantly located in deep waters exceeding 100 meters, which is too deep for fixed-bottom turbines. However, logistical challenges remain. Floating turbines often have to be towed over long distances, from their assembly port till the final installation site. Each turbine may also need to be towed multiple times to port during its operational lifetime for major maintenance tasks.

These towing operations are energy-intensive, requiring large tugboats that consume significant fuel and generate high emissions.

The TowFOWT project seeks to address this challenge by developing a novel drag reduction fairing, a streamlined device that reduces the hydrodynamic resistance experienced during towing. By lowering the towing drag, the project aims to cut fuel consumption and associated emissions, contributing directly to Malta’s decarbonisation efforts and transition to a green and blue economy.

The research will combine high-fidelity numerical simulations using Computational Fluid Dynamics with scaled experimental testing to optimize the geometry of the fairing. A key focus will be ensuring that the new device does not compromise towing stability, especially under challenging metocean conditions.

The project also aligns with similar challenges faced in China, where gigawatt-scale floating wind farms are being developed far offshore.

TowFOWT marks a significant step toward improving the sustainability and practicality of floating wind deployments in Malta and beyond.