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Offshore wind energy development
The new frontier, the offshore wind resource, grid integration, offshore wind farm development, We@Sea
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The new frontier
Offshore sites are the new frontier for the international wind industry. In northern Europe alone more than 20,000 MW of capacity is planned off the coasts of a dozen countries (including Denmark, Germany, United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands).
Offshore wind energy has clear advantages over onshore wind energy: the wind speeds are higher and more constant than onshore and the impact on the landscape is negligible. On the other hand, offshore wind energy is more expensive due to higher investments and installation costs, more expensive electrical cabling and higher operation and maintenance cost. Economy of scale requires that wind turbines become larger and wind farm size increases. Hence the financial risks involved increase accordingly.
KEMA has played an active role in offshore wind farm development from the beginning. Our activities include:- wind resource assessments
- grid integration studies
- financial risks of large scale offshore wind development
- due diligence on 100 MW near shore offshore wind farm plans
- national measuring and evaluation program
- offshore wind farm development
This makes KEMA a perfect partner in offshore wind energy development.
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The offshore wind resource
As early as 1990 KEMA carried out wind resource assessments for the North Sea based on available wind measurements on offshore platforms. This resulted in data for wind energy yield estimates and fatigue loads of wind farms.
The EU-funded project POWER (Predicting Offshore Wind Energy Resources), in which KEMA participated, yielded important information on:- the wind resources in European seas
- applicable models in the transition zone between offshore and onshore
- the wave climate
- the offshore wind profile.
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Grid integration
KEMA’s core business is the generation, transmission and
distribution of electrical power. Therefore, KEMA is the partner
for the Dutch government to study the effect of large scale
implementation of offshore wind energy on the electrical grid.
Using the model Prosym KEMA predicted the impact of 6,000 MW
offshore wind energy on the Dutch electrical system balance. The
required amount of spinning reserve was determined in order to
safeguard the reliability of the system. KEMA estimated the value
of wind energy on the electricity market with and without
forecasting.
In an extensive study for the Dutch government KEMA has
estimated the required grid extension and improvements required for
making the national goal of 6,000 MW offshore wind energy
possible.
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Offshore wind farm development
Near the port of Rotterdam the Zeestroom consortium is developing an offshore wind farm of approximately 10 MW in 10 m deep water. The wind farm will consist of Zephyros wind turbines supported by innovative Smarttower constructions. KEMA is a partner in the consortium and responsible for the wind farm design, the consenting process and PPA negotiations.
Other partners in the project are Zephyros, Smarttower and Koninklijke Volker Wessel Stevin.
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We@Sea
We@Sea is a knowledge development program intended to boost the offshore wind energy development in the Netherlands. KEMA participates in this program and is responsible for the research line "Energy transport and distribution". The research line focuses on the best possible ways to- transport offshore energy to the shore
- integrate wind power in the electricity grid.
For more information please contact us.
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