Floating Offshore Wind (FOW) is set to be the next big thing in renewable power. It can unlock huge wind potential in new areas globally, but it will also enable many countries lacking suitable seabed conditions for fixed bottom wind to realize large economic benefits.
Although FOW has the potential to become a huge global industry, there are still a number of hurdles that the industry must cross in order to become commercially attractive in terms of Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE).
Whereas the price for delivering offshore wind energy in 2019 ranged between $48 and $60 per MWh of electricity, current auctions for floating wind are priced over twice that amount. This means more investment capital is needed to get projects off the ground, and of course higher electricity costs for the end user.
One cause of this additional cost are the foundations used for floating offshore wind, which can be truly massive in scale. At their upper end, these giants can weigh tens of thousands of tonnes each; substantial fabrication projects of steel or concrete.
What’s more, in some countries the installation window is reduced to only six months per year, due to weather or environmental restrictions. So, the pressure is truly on for supply chains to mature rapidly – with an end goal of meeting the pace at which OEMs can produce turbines.
Offshore wind development has to date focused on prototype projects with limited scope and highly varied designs. Through standardized design principles and modularized mass manufacturing strategies, construction can take place in parallel and economies of scale can be enjoyed that will lower the capital investments needed – making offshore wind more viable for more countries…
