Standardising floating offshore wind foundations and reducing the cost of capital to bring it in line with fixed-bottom could deliver some of the largest cost reductions for the technology, according to a new report from the UK’s Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult.
The report sets out a methodology for identifying and tracking the factors that drive floating wind costs as the technology moves towards commercial scale and identifies 21 potential cost-reduction factors, concluding that cost reductions are likely to result from a sequence of measures as the industry matures rather than a single breakthrough.
Standardising floating substructure designs could reduce costs by up to 17 per cent, according to the analysis. ORE Catapult said more than 100 floating substructure designs are currently in the market, with greater standardisation expected to increase supply-chain confidence and reduce technical uncertainty.
The cost of capital was identified as the single largest cost-reduction lever. Bringing financing costs closer to those of fixed-bottom offshore wind could deliver almost 20 per cent in savings, the report found. Other factors include increased competition and advances in manufacturing.
The report does not provide an overall cost-reduction figure for floating offshore wind but assesses individual technology and project cost drivers.
The analysis used seven UK-based floating wind scenarios in the Celtic Sea, North Sea and waters east of Shetland. The scenarios cover different floating substructure technologies and commercial-scale projects, with data provided by turbine manufacturers, substructure designers, developers, ports, insurers and government.
ORE Catapult said sustained deployment and a consistent project pipeline will be necessary to achieve longer-term cost reductions by allowing the supply chain to invest and develop economies of scale.
The report was led by ORE Catapult and funded by the Floating Offshore Wind Centre of Excellence and the Floating Wind Executive (FLOWEX).
The next phase of the work will develop a Cost Reduction Monitoring Framework to track progress, inform investment and policy interventions, and assess the development of a commercially scalable floating offshore wind industry.