The first floating offshore wind farm on the planet (Wind Buoy Atlantic), located on the coast of Viana do Castelo (north of Portugal) and supported by the Portuguese energy company PDEnow allied with the French in the field of offshore wind, this month celebrates three years of operations at full capacity Engie through joint venture Ocean Winds– continues to analyze other application options in the Iberian Peninsula and other parts of the planet, including in Galicia, where it plans to build one of these complexes.
Windfloat Atlantic complex actually started generating electricity December 2019It was then that the first of the towers built by the company was installed in Ferrol windar and the state Navantiaand it was founded 18 kilometers from the coast. Gradually until August 2020, the other two platforms were also produced. setubal (Portugal).
Three years after the completion of the deployment, this complex, located 20 kilometers from the shore at the furthest of the wind turbines, is located in the offshore area. 11 square kilometers production met expectations in terms of performance and reliability. Its compatibility with various marine uses such as biodiversity and fishing has also been confirmed, according to its promoters.
with installed power 25 megawatts Between three wind turbines (equivalent to consumed energy) 60,000 houses The Wind Float project is owned by the Windplus consortium, led by Ocean Winds (EDP and Engie’s renewable energy subsidiary), which includes Spanish energy company Repsol and American technology provider Policy Power.
The Viana do Castelo complex is the first commercial experience of so-called semi-submerged offshore wind power after the consortium’s offshore pilot project (now dismantled) between 2011 and 2016. grinding (40 kilometers south of Viana do Castelo) with a turbine 2 megawatts.
If this prototype had demonstrated that floating wind turbines were able to take advantage of the abundant wind resources previously inaccessible in deep water (more than 50 or 60 meters above the seafloor) in the open sea, it was possible to overcome extreme weather conditions with up to 100,000 waves. 17 meters high The experience gained in the commercial complex located in front of Viana do Castelo has confirmed its economic sustainability (although still more expensive than onshore wind power) and established the litmus test for this type of bank saw industry. Offshore wind power is a promising, profitable activity and is therefore likely to be financed.
Projects
It is recognized in the industry with certainty that it will have the most promising future compared to steady offshore wind (wind towers installed on the seabed) because the narrowness of the continental shelf in most of the world’s coastal environment, as in the Iberian Peninsula and also in Galicia, implies that great depths can be reached at a very short distance from the coast and it is impossible to choose it. For fixed structures.
Ocean Winds currently has another floating marine park In the south of France (in the Bay of Lion), one is fixed in Scotland and the other is mixed (fixed and floating) again in Scotland. It is currently supporting two projects (in engineering and processing) in South Korea and California, the first with 1,300 megawatts and the second with 2,000 megawatts. Very few projects have emerged in Galicia in recent months, some even behind Cíes. In any case, given that definitive regulation is not yet on the horizon, until then only Marine Area Management Plan (POEM)- and calls for tenders for capacity allocation aside, next-generation technological advances have already happened. The floating offshore wind industry is constantly developing new solutions and it is conceivable that even more powerful turbines will soon be available.
Imposing towers floating on the sea and their wings making no sound
The three imposing wind towers rise above many other floating platforms, 35 minutes by boat from Viana do Castelo. Under the giant wings that generate electricity by rotating with the effect of the wind, no sound can be heard other than the engine of the boat and the waves of the sea; several groups of dolphins also approach to watch the visitors arrive. It differs from what is usual around terrestrial towers where the loudness is considerable. The pioneer of semi-submerged wind farms consists of three 100-meter towers built on platforms up to 30 meters high. Part of the platform is exposed, the rest remains below the sea line. Each structure is placed on the sea floor, a 100 meters deep, by means of a chain secured by dragging the last anchor to the seafloor. A distance of six hundred meters separates each platform from the platform in its immediate vicinity. The wings are 82 meters long and 164 meters in diameter. The power of each turbine is 8.4 megawatts. The complex is designed to be active against winds of up to 100 kilometers per hour and withstand waves of up to 20 meters. Last year it produced 78 gigawatts/hour. Strengthening is not ignored.