OCEAN WINDS RISING

Turn Baby, Turn – Offshore Wind Power Poised for Major Growth in U.S.
William Pentland, November 8, 2010 (Forbes)

"The United States boasts more installed, on-shore wind power capacity than any other country…[but while] Europe has installed nearly 1,000 wind turbines offshore since Denmark built the world’s first offshore wind farm in 1991, the U.S. has not installed a single offshore wind turbine…[That will] change soon.

"Wind tends to blow more forcefully and uniformly over the ocean than on land, providing the potential for increased electricity generation and smoother, steadier operation…The offshore wind resource within 50 nautical miles of the U.S. coastline is estimated at more than 4,000 GW, or roughly four times the generating capacity currently carried on the U.S. electric grid…[N]on-technical constraints [could reduce that by half but]… the offshore wind resource still seems prodigious."

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"Nearly two dozen offshore wind-power projects representing more than 2,000 MW of capacity are in the planning and permitting stages, mostly in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions…For many of these states, offshore wind is the most abundant indigenous energy source and the only commercial option for renewable power generation, especially in southern states…Companies like Google are planning to invest billions in deepwater transmission networks [from Virginia to New Jersey capable of delivering 2,000 megawatts of wind energy] to accomodate offshore wind farms off the East Coast…

"…In 2009, New York City’s Economic Development Corporation retained Charles River Associates to develop a master electrical transmission plan for New York City. The plan considered the environmental and economic impacts of a range of long-term transmission planning scenarios, including a 500 MW offshore wind farm…[and] concluded that in-city generation projects provided the most substantial benefits. The offshore wind farm was the runner-up. The final report recommended [addressing the technical and economic challenges of]…offshore wind…[A] multi-million dollar feasibility study of offshore wind power near New York City [is pending]…"

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"…[T]he economics of offshore wind energy are ‘challenging’…[C]apital costs are twice as high as land-based [wind and expand with distance from land and water depth and contract as the size of a project increases. Offshore wind’s estimated average capital investment is $4,250 per kW in 2010 but will likely decline as technologies mature. It will need to fall quite a bit to be competitive]…

"…Developing the necessary support infrastructure implies one-time costs for customized vessels, port and harbor upgrades and new manufacturing facilities. Manufacturers are designing larger wind turbines capable of generating more electricity per turbine in an effort to improve these economics…[S]ubstantial research programs, like the European Union’s UpWind project, have been launched…to develop substantially improved models of the principal wind turbine components…for very large-scale offshore wind [turbines and] farms…"