Conditions for just offshore wind energy: Addressing the societal challenges of the North Sea wind industry

Abstract: With the increase in global investments in offshore wind energy and the rapid implementation of wind technologies in hazardous deep water environments, operational inspection of wind turbines and related infrastructure plays an important role in the safe and efficient operation of offshore wind farms. In recent years, much attention has been paid to the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and remotely piloted unmanned aerial vehicles (RPAs) commonly referred to as "drones" for remote inspection of renewable energy infrastructure, i.e. photovoltaic farms and onshore wind farms. Drones have significant potential also in in offshore wind energy. Inspection with drones allows for to reduce not only the number of flight operations (involvement of aircraft and flight crews) and the transport of personnel carrying out the maintenance and repair of offshore wind turbines. With drones is possible carry the equipment transported for hazardous inspection work. The involvement of UAVs also reduces the plant downtime needed to detect faults and collect diagnostic information from the entire wind farm. The benefits of inspection technology in the offshore wind energy industry based on drones are confirmed by the previous tests, and the prospect of offshore energy development encourages further work with the use of UAVs. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that any unexpected failure of the drone system during its mission may interrupt control works (during inspections), and thus reduce the electricity generated by wind turbines. The article presents the potential of drones in the process of inspecting wind farms, including offshore wind farms, presents examples of UAV models used for inspections, indicates methods of conducting inspections with the use of drones and highlights a significant reduction in the costs of the operation of offshore wind farms as a result of limiting the use of manned aviation (helicopters and flight crews) and the elimination of the risk associated with the involvement of personnel to perform inspections of wind farms at sea. The potential of unmanned floating platforms as part of cooperation with UAV in the process of inspecting offshore wind farms was also indicated. Keywords: wind energy, offshore, drones, wind farms, drone inspections, maritime inspections, marine aviation, offshore, offshore wind energy, safety air operations, risk analysis

Modelling the impact of renewable energy investment on global carbon dioxide emissions

Global investments in offshore wind energy are expected to escalate over the coming decades, fueled by improvements in technology, declining costs, and increasing political support. The complexity, scale, and location of these developments make international ownership and export of electricity more feasible. We examine how the general public's acceptance of wind energy will be affected by a political shift in focus from onshore to nearshore or offshore locations, from local or national dominance of ownership to international dominance, and from meeting local or national needs to meeting international ones. We use a nationwide choice experiment with 1612 individuals in Norway to reveal the preferences for these attributes and apply a mixed logit regression model to estimate the willingness to pay to avoid certain outcomes. We show that, although respondents prefer offshore and nearshore locations to onshore ones, they are even more concerned with maintaining local or national control both through ownership and intended use of the added electricity. Although the preferences for national ownership are strong for both nearshore and offshore alternatives, the preference for meeting national needs becomes less important when wind energy developments are located farther off the coast. Three wind energy scenarios are used to further investigate these preferences: 1) international consortium for offshore wind energy, 2) national alliances for nearshore wind energy, and 3) local energy communities for onshore wind energy. We also discuss how a shift to nearshore and offshore wind energy can be enabled by paying greater attention to people's concerns over national control of wind energy resources.

The goal of the project was to develop a greater understanding of the key factors determining wind energy component manufacturing costs and pricing on a global basis in order to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers, and to reduce installed systems cost. Multiple stakeholders including DOE, turbine OEMs, and large component manufactures will all benefit by better understanding the factors determining domestic competitiveness in the emerging offshore and next generation land-based wind industries. Major objectives of this project were to: 1. Carry out global cost and process comparisons for 5MW jacket foundations, blades, towers, and permanent magnet generators; 2. Assess U.S. manufacturers’ competitiveness and potential for cost reduction; 3. Facilitate informed decision-making on investments in U.S. manufacturing; 4. Develop an industry scorecard representing the readiness of the U.S. manufacturers’ to produce components for the next generations of wind turbines, nominally 3MW land-based and 5MW offshore; 5. Disseminate results through the GLWN Wind Supply Chain GIS Map, a free website that is the most comprehensive public database of U.S. wind energy suppliers; 6. Identify areas and develop recommendations to DOE on potential R&D areas to target for increasing domestic manufacturing competitiveness, per DOE’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative (CEMI). Lists of Deliverables 1. Cost Breakdown Competitive Analyses of four product categories: tower, jacket foundation, blade, and permanent magnet (PM) generator. The cost breakdown for each component includes a complete Bill of Materials with net weights; general process steps for labor; and burden adjusted by each manufacturer for their process categories of SGA (sales general and administrative), engineering, logistics cost to a common U.S. port, and profit. 2. Value Stream Map Competitiveness Analysis: A tool that illustrates both information and material flow from the point of getting a customer order at the manufacturing plant; to the orders being forwarded by the manufacturing plant to the material suppliers; to the material being received at the manufacturing plant and processed through the system; to the final product being shipped to the Customer. 3. Competitiveness Scorecard: GLWN developed a Wind Industry Supply Chain Scorecard that reflects U.S. component manufacturers’ readiness to supply the next generation wind turbines, 3MW and 5MW, for land-based and offshore applications. 4. Wind Supply Chain Database & Map: Expand the current GLWN GIS Wind Supply Chain Map to include offshore elements. This is an on-line, free access, wind supply chain map that provides a platform for identifying active and emerging suppliers for the land-based and offshore wind industry, including turbine component manufacturers and wind farm construction service suppliers.

"This article presents the main methods of installing submarine cables used in the offshore wind industry and the impact they have on the marine environment. From this article, the reader will be able to understand the basic principles that are taken into account from the design phase of a submarine cable, principles that seek to streamline their installation, operation and maintenance and their impact on the marine environment. Given the scale of the development of the wind industry, especially offshore, the length of submarine cables that provide energy transport from the wind farm to shore consumers is also constantly growing. The construction and operation of offshore wind energy systems has been and continues to be regarded with scepticism by environmental activists. Despite the undeniable benefits of this renewable energy source, the impact on the marine environment must also be taken into consideration. We studied the most efficient methods of installing submarine cables in the offshore wind industry – study which also includes analysing the behaviour of submarine cables and analysing ships’ movement during cable transport and installation. This article is only part of a major research on the installation of submarine cables in the offshore wind industry. In terms of the frequency and relatively short duration of submarine cable installation operations, on a small strip of up to 8m, the disturbances and impact caused by these operations are considered minor and are preferred compared to bottom trawling operations and dredging, which are repetitive and more extensive. A single impact, such as cable burial operations, is preferred to continuous, multiple or recurrent impacts. [1] "

With increasing global investment in offshore wind energy and rapid deployment of wind power technologies in deep water hazardous environments, the in-service inspection of wind turbines and their related infrastructure plays an important role in the safe and efficient operation of wind farm fleets. The use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and remotely piloted aircraft (RPA)—commonly known as “drones”—for remote inspection of wind energy infrastructure has received a great deal of attention in recent years. Drones have significant potential to reduce not only the number of times that personnel will need to travel to and climb up the wind turbines, but also the amount of heavy lifting equipment required to carry out the dangerous inspection works. Drones can also shorten the duration of downtime needed to detect defects and collect diagnostic information from the entire wind farm. Despite all these potential benefits, the drone-based inspection technology in the offshore wind industry is still at an early stage of development and its reliability has yet to be proven. Any unforeseen failure of the drone system during its mission may cause an interruption in inspection operations, and thereby, significant reduction in the electricity generated by wind turbines. In this paper, we propose a semiquantitative reliability analysis framework to identify and evaluate the criticality of mission failures—at both system and component levels—in inspection drones, with the goal of lowering the operation and maintenance (O&M) costs as well as improving personnel safety in offshore wind farms. Our framework is built based upon two well-established failure analysis methodologies, namely, fault tree analysis (FTA) and failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). It is then tested and verified on a drone prototype, which was developed in the laboratory for taking aerial photography and video of both onshore and offshore wind turbines. The most significant failure modes and underlying root causes within the drone system are identified, and the effects of the failures on the system’s operation are analysed. Finally, some innovative solutions are proposed on how to minimize the risks associated with mission failures in inspection drones.

The use of wind turbines and the problem of icing

A review of combined wave and offshore wind energy

The offshore wind industry is growing rapidly and is also a high risk industry with unique safety challenges. As the industry grows, more research is needed to make sure it operates safely and provides a workplace in which all involved can go home free of injury. The adoption of floating wind turbines brings new hazards and increased complexity to offshore wind operations and maintenance. Floating wind operations will involve the development of new deepwater sites and require the adoption of new strategies such as floating to floating transfers and towing operations. As the complexity of offshore operations increases it is important that the understanding of the hazards involved are developed. Floating wind is a new branch of the offshore wind industry and as technologies and systems have yet to become established there is the opportunity to do things differently and embed safety improvements in the industry from the outset. This study has looked at the potential application of systems safety theories to floating wind operations and maintenance. The application of systems engineering to improve safety performance has been growing across many industries in recent years. Systems safety considers that safety is an emergent property of a complex system that is a result of many interacting factors. This study looks at how systems safety could be applied to the emerging floating wind industry to build safety into the industry at the earliest stages. This study reviewed the applications of systems safety across similar industries and the offshore wind industry. It then looks at existing hazards of floating wind that have already been identified in the literature and completed a systems theory hazard analysis of floating wind O&M activities. This involved the mapping of the safety control structure for floating wind operations and the identification of potential gaps between the safety controls and safety requirements. It then explores how systems safety processes could be applied to floating wind and makes recommendations for how these could be implemented to the emergent industry. The study found existing research of systems safety applied to the offshore wind industry is currently very limited. Its application has been successful in similar industries and there is potential for a systems safety approach to be used in the development of floating wind operations and maintenance. The systems theory hazard analysis can help identify potential systemic risks arising as a result of the interaction of multiple systems. It can be used to develop appropriate control structures to manage safety and could also be used for the identification of leading indicators to manage safety performance.

Public attitude towards onshore wind farm development in Ireland has been extensively investigated. Prior to this study, there was little or no understanding of the perception of the Irish public of offshore wind farms (OSWFs). At this critical juncture in the development of the sector, it is necessary to gauge public opinion regarding offshore wind farms. Data was collected using an online survey (n = 1154) between May and June 2019. Results detail the opinions and attitudes of the Irish public toward the development of renewable energy projects in Irish waters. Demographics showed a 49% male, 51% female split. Education levels and age ranges roughly follow the same distribution levels as seen in the 2016 census of Ireland. Results indicate that attitudes to planned offshore wind farms change significantly with education levels. The evidence suggests that the link between climate change mitigation by energy emissions reduction and offshore wind farms is an important aspect of public perception that supports the development of the sector in Ireland. Most of those questioned believed that Ireland is too reliant on foreign energy and agreed that Ireland is running out of its limited fossil fuel reserves. The majority of people also believed that the government is not doing enough to reduce carbon emissions and should invest in offshore wind farms. Sixty-three percent of those surveyed believed that offshore wind farms will increase Ireland’s job creation potential. A clear majority of those who took part in the survey were in favour of offshore wind farms both on a local and national level. Just over half of the participants believed that offshore wind farms are the best solution to our energy situation. Thirty-seven percent of respondents trust offshore wind farm developers and 34% indicate that they were neutral on the subject. Fifteen percent of those who took part in the survey indicated that they mistrust developers. Approximately half of respondents had previous experience of offshore wind farms (the majority of whom had experienced offshore wind farms on holiday). A minority group had experience of offshore wind farms as a result of their daily commute or had an offshore wind farm in the vicinity of their homes. The data confirmed the hypothesis that experience of offshore wind farms has a significant effect on attitudes towards them. Results show that those with experience of offshore wind farms are more positive towards offshore wind farm development in Irish waters, than those with no experience of offshore wind farms. To further investigate the perception of those who are regularly exposed to offshore wind farms, a focus group involving five members of the public with regular exposure to Ireland’s only wind farm, Arklow Bank Wind Park, was held. The scope of sentiment expressed towards the offshore turbines ranged from benign to extremely positive. Returning to the results of the national survey; in terms of the effect on wildlife, tourism and aesthetics, respondents found offshore wind farms to be relatively unobtrusive and in general a positive addition to the sea scape. This report provides a resource for the offshore wind industry and policy makers alike. The data would suggest that an opportunity exists to create a public awareness campaign as a next step, to build on the favourable national mood and public understanding of the role of offshore wind in decarbonising the economy.

As a new and cost-effective renewable energy power generation technology, offshore wind power is getting more and more attention. The development of offshore wind power industry is affected by policy-making, technology management, resources and environment, market supply and demand, and the relationship among the influencing factors is complex. This paper analyzes the factors that affect offshore wind power industry from a unique and comprehensive perspective. Fourteen factors are selected and interpretative structural model (ISM) is established to study the relationship between the influencing factors of offshore wind power industry. The results show that 14 influencing factors can be divided into five levels: the first level is the surface factors, including the economic incentive policy, operation mechanism, industrial chain, energy market mechanism, investment, and financing mechanism; the second and third levels are the intermediate factors, including generation cost, operation management, and offshore wind power technology; the fourth and fifth levels are deep-seated factors, including development planning and grid price, site selection, R&D investment, environmental protection policy, and offshore wind power supply. Deep-seated factors have a direct impact on the intermediate factors, the intermediate factors have an important impact on the surface factors, and the surface factors directly affect the development of offshore wind power industry. The influence of the 14 factors selected in this paper on offshore wind power industry is from bottom to top, from deep to shallow.

Safety Indicators for the Marine Operations in the Installation and Operating Phase of an Offshore Wind Farm

With the increased focus in the US on green technology, there are several offshore wind farms being planned in the US waters to meet the goal of utilizing renewable energy sources for consumers. The offshore wind industry can benefit substantially by leveraging the design and analysis experience from oil and gas platforms in the United States and from offshore wind turbines in European waters. However, no offshore wind turbines have ever been installed in U.S. waters where several unique challenges must be addressed, particularly with respect to how tropical storms may alter the design basis. This paper presents the engineering challenges that need to be addressed in analyzing offshore wind turbines to include the metocean loads imposed where both the aerodynamic and hydrodynamic loads may be equally significant with particular attention to U.S. characteristics. Analysis techniques available for offshore oil and platforms can be utilized for assessment of offshore wind turbine structures. Specifically, the engineering insights on ultimate strength analysis and the implicit safety levels as warranted in design codes can be used to inform the design process for offshore wind turbines, giving due regard to the hurricane risk present in U.S. waters that changes with geography. Introduction and Background This paper presents key results on safety level assessments for offshore wind turbines from recently completed studies, References (1) and (2), that compared two design guidelines for applicability to U.S. waters. The methodology and examples presented can be used to better analyze and design, for adequate structural safety, offshore wind turbine structures to be considered for deployment in US waters. The objective of this paper is to present the range of metocean loads present at a U.S. offshore site, and the nonlinear dynamic response of a monopile- foundation offshore wind turbine, when subject to operational and extreme loads. Insights into shallow water depth effects, soil-pile interaction modeling, modeling of aerodynamic wind loads along with concurrent hydrodynamic wave and current loads, and the analyzed physical behavior of the structure will be presented. This paper presents the following sequence of studies to develop the reliability assessment for offshore wind turbines in the United States:Direct comparison of safety factors in the two design guidelines (American Petroleum Institute (API) vs. International Electrotechnical Committee (IEC); more on this follows) studied,Comparison of reliability levels achieved for a generic offshore wind turbine structure for the two guidelines, for four sites/regions, andComparison of reliability levels for two types of offshore wind turbine substructures at a specific site designed based on both API and IEC guidelines API vs. IEC - A comparison of safety levels for US Waters The two design guidelines being studied here are:The American Petroleum Institute guidelines for fixed offshore platforms based on working stress design (WSD) methodology; see Reference (3).International Electrotechnical Committee guidelines for offshore wind turbines (OWTs) based on load and resistance factor (LRFD) methods primarily developed for use in European conditions, see Reference (4).

Characteristics, potentials, and challenges of transdisciplinary research

Europe, China and the United States: Three different approaches to the development of offshore wind energy