To a casual observer, the energy transition seems to be in full swing: many governments and businesses around the world are pledging to reduce their carbon emissions to zero over the next few decades, which means that for the most part, fossil fuels will have to be replaced by renewable energy. To meet these net zero goals, however, and shift from fossil fuels to low-carbon energy, renewable energy sources need to be developed urgently.
Unfortunately, this capacity does not exist, as the wind leaders recently explained to the G20. In 2017, almost 80% of the world’s energy came from fossil fuels, and although renewable sources are growing rapidly, a huge gap in installed capacity needs to be filled, especially as demand for energy continues to grow. increase over the coming years. The “floating wind†has the potential to go a long way in bridging this gap and is a game changer for the energy sector on a global scale.
Above the ocean floor
The concept is quite simple: floating wind power uses turbines located at sea but not drilled in the ocean floor to produce clean electricity. The turbines are towed out to sea, then erected on floating platforms, and can be towed to shore for maintenance whenever needed. The ability to float turbines regardless of the depth of the sea is a game-changer in terms of capacity, and the potential for standardized manufacturing (compared to fixed-bottom offshore wind) is a game-changer in terms of cost.
Floating wind has several key advantages over traditional onshore or fixed-bottom wind farms.
First, floating wind has a much greater potential additional capacity than onshore wind or offshore wind fixed to the bottom (wind turbines fixed to the seabed). Onshore wind power is often seen by local communities as an eyesore, and building permits for new sites are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain.
Offshore wind sites attached to the bottom are limited by both water depth and existing marine infrastructure, meaning that turbines can only be installed at depths of up to 197 feet and cannot not interfere too much with local communities and wildlife. Floating wind, on the other hand, can be installed regardless of the depth of the sea, opening up vast expanses of ocean, which could be used for power generation. The floating wind is estimated to have roughly double the potential capacity of the offshore wind set at the bottom, and this only takes into account areas up to 124 miles from shore.
Second, the wind levels are more constant further from the shore. This means that for similar installation costs, larger turbines with higher power outputs can be used, which increases energy efficiency and profitability.
Third, floating wind could facilitate standardized design and production of wind turbines, which could significantly reduce costs. Currently, different types of soil and different ocean currents mean that each offshore wind farm has to be designed separately, which dramatically increases the investment costs. Standardization would reduce these upfront costs and facilitate scale for production and maintenance, as well as the use of secondary materials, and recycling and reuse at the end of turbine life. This level of scale will be the key to reducing costs, and capital expenditure is already declining very rapidly.
In addition to producing electricity (which could potentially be fed into grids), it is possible to take advantage of floating wind technology to produce green hydrogen (i.e. hydrogen produced using renewable energies), potentially transforming even existing oil and gas assets (e.g. platforms in the North Sea) into decentralized hydrogen production units. Theoretically, if the shipping industry moves towards hydrogen, decentralized refueling units for ships could also be created, thus reducing demand on ports.
Job prospects are also bright. The offshore oil and gas industry has historically been a large employer in many parts of the world (eg North Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Persian Gulf). For years, workers trained in offshore oil have developed skills and expertise in a hazardous environment: these same skills are directly transferable to floating wind power, for example equipment inspections, staffing of boats refueling, etc.
Ensuring a socially just energy transition is key to its social acceptance: floating wind can ensure that some of the people hardest hit by the oil and gas sector contraction will directly benefit from the new jobs created by the development of renewable energies. Floating wind will also bring local jobs: ports will need to be modernized, turbine maintenance will be done locally, and production of turbines and support structures could also take place near new wind farms. All of this means that local communities will benefit not only from clean energy, but also from the economic benefits that come with it.
Obstacles ahead
The road ahead for the floating wind, however, is not without obstacles. Floating wind is still a new technology, and not all investors are ready to bet on it. Costs remain higher than fixed-bottom wind power today, with high costs for cables and grid connection required. Indeed, in some situations, connection to local grids may not be feasible, requiring alternative measures to bring energy ashore, such as green hydrogen. Huge and highly developed port facilities will also be required to effectively maintain the turbines, an infrastructure that cannot be built overnight.
To jumpstart investment, subsidies will initially be needed (unless carbon externalities are properly priced), until standardization, learning, and scale bring the costs of floating wind below that. those of comparative methods. Current estimates see 2035 as the time when the discounted costs for fixed and floating wind converge, but it is possible that this time will be reached much sooner.
As Will Hancock, Senior Structural Engineer at Wood Thilstead, explains: “There is a scenario where floating wind becomes the cheapest form of wind power within 10 years (…) mainly due to the standardization of turbines and increased site availability.
Expected reductions in wind energy costs. Courtesy of Berkeley Lab
All over the world, governments, organizations and ordinary people are urgently discussing carbon emissions. It seems that the floating wind is often absent from this debate. Not only do governments need to ensure funding for this new technology (e.g. through grants to accelerate scale-up), they also need to ensure that planning for new projects is a priority, and collaboration when challenges arise. projects located on the high seas (ie not in a jurisdiction of a country) are planned.
The opportunity offered by floating wind turbines is enormous, and so too is the need for its urgent intensification.
