Offshore Wind Farms

The technology behind constructing wind farms offshore began to develop in 1991 when the Vindeby wind farm was installed off the Danish coast (11 Bonus 450 kW turbines). Resource assessment, grid connection, and wind farm operation are significant challenges for offshore wind power just as it is for the more traditional onshore wind power, which has been under development since the 1970s.

However, offshore projects face extra technical challenges some of which requires in-depth scientific investigations. This article deals with some of the most outstanding challenges concerning the turbine structure: the rotor, the nacelle, the tower, and the foundation. Further the determinations of the essential environmental conditions are treated: the wind field, the wave field, the sea current, and the soil conditions.

The various options for grid connections, advantages, and disadvantages are discussed. Of special concern are the problems associated with locating the turbines close together in a wind farm and the problems of placing several large wind farms in a confined area. The environmental impacts of offshore wind farms are also treated, but not the supply chain, that is, the harbors, the installation vessels, the O&M ships, and the communication and maintenance challenges.