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Offshore wind FIDs to ‘skyrocket’ 57% by 2022 – new report
Worldwide Finance
New analysis from Westwood Global Energy Group, the energy market research and consultancy firm, suggests that offshore wind energy project final investment decisions outside mainland China will grow 57% in the next 18 months, compared to the 2019-20 period. The growth represents an additional 20.4 GW of new power capacity with just under a third of this activity being driven by emerging offshore wind markets such as the USA, Vietnam, and South Korea. “You can no longer look at the oil and gas and offshore wind sectors as binary – lines are blurred and so are supply chains. Companies need to adjust their strategies to
grasp the opportunities, and this is why our WindLogix application is integrated into our offshore energy suite of solutions” said Thom Payne, head of Offshore Energy Services at Westwood. “Even though Westwood has been analysing offshore wind since 2006, the market is still young and the construction and installation of wind farms has benefited from lower oil and gas supply chain prices, as a result of weaker oil and gas demand. This has enabled the growth in offshore wind by making it easier to access shared services cost efficiently. But as prices rise, developers will struggle to compete, especially as offshore wind projects become more complex and require more intricate
engineering, equipment and vessels. WindLogix’s intuitive user interface will enable our clients to identify the most relevant market opportunities, prioritise resources and stay ahead of the curve.” Westwood launched its new WindLogix application as part of its global offshore energy intelligence interface. It has been developed to offer OEMs, vessel owners, engineering houses and developers daily data driven insight, for early identification of offshore wind supply chain opportunities. It is said to deliver highly intuitive market analytics dashboards alongside vessel, station and component data for offshore wind projects.
Green light for Martha’s Vineyard USA Wind power
The US Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has given the final go-ahead to Vineyard Wind 1, the USA’s first commercial-scale offshore wind farm, scheduled to be built 15 miles from the Martha’s Vineyard shoreline.
Vineyard Wind 1 is projected to generate 800 MWe using GE Haliade-X offshore wind turbines. These turbines can generate between 12 and 14 MW, depending on the specification for a given project. Using these very high rated WTGs has allowed the developer to reduce the number of turbines it needs from 108 to 62. John Lavelle, president and CEO of Offshore Wind at GE Renewable Energy, said the announcement was “a key step toward achieving the Biden administration’s goal of bringing 30 GW of offshore wind online by 2030.”
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Vineyard Wind project stated: “Located 15 miles off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, Vineyard Wind 1 is slated to become the first large-scale offshore wind farm in the United States. With a generating capacity of 800 MW, the project … is also expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.68 million metric tons annually.”
Seven US states have commitments to procure 20 GW of offshore wind by 2030, generating enough power to meet two-thirds of the electricity demand in New England. The $70 billion investment is expected to generate enormous new economic opportunities across the Eastern USA.
Mocean Energy unveils wave energy prototype Scotland Wave power
Wave power specialists Mocean Energy unveiled on 21 April its ‘Blue X’ wave energy prototype. The machine was scheduled to be deployed at sea in Orkney during May. The 20 metre long, 38 tonne wave machine has been fabricated wholly in Scotland and will be deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre’s Scapa Flow test site for sea trials initially, and then later deployed at EMEC’s large scale Billia Croo test site this summer.
Mocean plans to connect the device to a subsea battery next year. It will be used to
power a remotely operated autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV). The manufacture and testing programme is supported by £3.3 million from Wave Energy Scotland (WES) through their Novel Wave Energy Converter programme. The machine was unveiled at a ceremony at Forth Port’s Rosyth Docks by WES managing director Tim Hurst, who commented: “This is a significant milestone for Mocean Energy and for WES. The product of five years of the WES programme and three phases of development for the Mocean technology that has seen the Blue X progress from concept, through wave tank testing and now to a scaled, real sea demonstrator. The focus is now on commissioning and the learning to be gained from the open water test campaign.” The Blue X will now undergo ballasting and wet testing at Rosyth before being transported to Orkney. Commenting on the project Mocean Energy managing director Cameron McNatt said: “Our test programme in Orkney will allow us to prove our concept at sea, particularly that its novel hull shapes will produce more power than traditional raft designs. This enables the development of commercial scale technologies suited to the oil and gas and other industries. We have a number of months in the summer to put the Blue X through sea trails, and in parallel test the subsea equipment at EC-OG’s home base. Next year we intend to ship the battery and AUV to Orkney and pair them up with Blue X at sea.” Last month Mocean Energy announced a £1.6 million project with OGTC, oil company Chrysaor (now newly formed Harbour Energy) and subsea specialists EC-OG and Modus to demonstrate the potential of the Blue X prototype to power a subsea battery and a remote underwater vehicle – using onshore testing at EC-OG’s Aberdeen facility.
www.modernpowersystems.com | May 2021 | 5
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