Radical new designs for offshore wind turbine foundations could be the key to reducing construction costs and opening up deep water areas for development, according to the UK’s Carbon Trust, and in support of that idea it has revealed seven new designs that have been shortlisted in a global competition designed to help accelerate the construction of offshore wind farms by reducing construction costs and overcoming key engineering challenges. The shortlisted designs include floating turbines anchored to the seabed and spider-like tripod structures.
Over 100 engineering companies from around the world submitted designs to the competition, which asked for ideas on the cost-effective construction of offshore wind turbines in severe wind conditions as far as 100 miles out to sea and in waters up to 60 m deep. The designs have the potential to revolutionise offshore wind farm construction, says the Carbon Trust, a quasi-independent government body.
“Building thousands of turbines offshore to provide a quarter of our power needs is the greatest engineering challenge we face in the coming decade,” said Carbon Trust CEO Tom Delay. “Without new thinking to cut costs many planned projects could remain on the drawing board putting our carbon targets and energy security at risk.”
The current price tag for the construction of 6000 new offshore wind turbines around the UK is around £75 billion, with deep water foundations accounting for 20 per cent or more of a wind farm’s total project costs. The seven proposed designs could lower the foundation costs by as much as one-quarter, according to the Carbon Trust, which examined the design submissions along with its programme partners Airtricity, Dong Energy, RWE Innogy, Scottish Power Renewables and Statoil.
The seven shortlisted designs, which also include a drilled concrete monopile design and a suction bucket monopile design, will receive up to £100 000 to support further development, commercial feasibility and technical assistance. Up to three final winners will have their designs built and installed in large scale demonstration projects in 2010-2012 with funding from a consortium led by the Carbon Trust.
Offshore wind is targeted to play a major role in the UK’s future electricity system, accounting for up to 25 per cent of demand by 2020. This will require the installation of around 6000 offshore turbines.
According to the Carbon Trust, the global need for offshore wind turbine foundations will reach 15 000 or more by 2020, creating a market worth up to £2.5 billion per year.
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