Supersize steel jackets could beat floating platforms on capital cost for offshore wind developers scoping out many of the deeper water projects soon to be built off Britain, as the country targets bringing 75GW of sea-based plant into operation to meet its 2050 net-zero climate pledge, according to new research from Xodus.
In a high-level study that modelled the per megawatt cost of building a wind farm at a range of “generic” UK North Sea sites using a 10MW turbine and either semisubmersible floating platforms or jackets, the consultancy found the bottom-fixed foundations would be the lowest cost in well over 60 metres of water – much deeper than the generally accepted market figure.
