Globally 70GW of floating wind could be installed by 2040, according to a forecast by the Carbon Trust.
The agency has released the latest summary findings from its Floating Wind Joint Industry Project (JIP), which includes new market projections.
The study projects up to 10.7GW of floating wind by 2030.
An installed capacity of 70GW by 2040 is estimated to have a project value of £195bn, demonstrating the “opportunity for the supply chain globally to support and invest in floating wind,” the Floating Wind Joint Industry Project – Phase 2 summary report stated.
The report outlines floating wind technology challenges prioritised by developers to accelerate the commercialisation of the technology.
The findings summarise the work undertaken as part of the second phase, across four main themes of turbine requirements and foundations scaling, heavy lift offshore operations, dynamic export cables and monitoring and inspection.
The second phase has attempted to address technical challenges faced by the industry in scaling up floating wind deployment.
These findings suggest that next-generation turbines only need minor modifications for floating wind deployments.
A study on turbine requirements and foundations scaling, by Ramboll, looked at the potential impacts of installing larger, next generation turbines on floating substructures.
Aside from turbine towers and controllers, it found that only minor modifications would likely be needed for future turbines, and that the required relative primary steel, secondary steel and mooring mass decreases for larger turbines.
A heavy lift offshore operations study undertaken by Seaway 7 investigated the challenges associated with floating heavy lift offshore construction and maintenance operations for turbines up to 20MW.
It found that the limited availability and high cost of suitable floating heavy lift vessels in the market at present is a barrier to cost effectively undertaking operations offshore.
As part of phase two BPP Cable Solutions investigated the challenges and assisted in the development of high voltage dynamic export cables required to transport power from floating offshore wind farms.
Previous JIP studies have highlighted a lack of suitable dynamic cables currently available on the market. A competition was launched to support cable manufacturers develop and test suitable designs. Five cable manufacturers are currently being supported by the JIP to make these available as products for future projects.
A study focused on monitoring and inspection, undertaken by Oceaneering, concluded that improvement is needed in both the collection of data and its usage to inform and manage asset integrity for floating wind farms, and in particular for subsea assets.
For this there were no “quick win” solutions, but techniques such as a digital twin approach, or unmanned vessels, could support cost effective solutions, the study found.
These studies follow on from phase one of the JIP’s work which started with a focus on electrical systems, mooring systems, and logistics for construction and operation for floating wind. Findings were published from these projects in 2018.
Scottish Energy Minister Paul Wheelhouse said: “I am sure that floating offshore wind will play a crucial role in our future renewables generation, and in helping us achieve a green recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The findings of this report from phase two of the project are very much welcomed.
“It is particularly encouraging to see the significant growth projected for the floating offshore wind industry in the coming decades and we are keen to explore early opportunities associated with the ScotWind leasing round of Crown Estate Scotland, the electrification of production platforms in the oil and gas sector and for production of ‘green hydrogen’ for use in transport, heating and industry.
“The development of floating wind offers a massive opportunity for sustainable growth of the Scottish economy while realising our net zero ambitions.”