Environmental Technology, News

Making it easier to plan offshore wind farms

When planning an offshore wind farm, it is important to consider the wind, waves and the seabed at the location where the turbines will stand. Researchers have now developed a dedicated tool that gives a combined overview of all the...

“When we began working with the wind power industry, it hit us that no-one really cares about what happens beneath the seabed. Yet there is a difference between installing turbines along a neat and tidy coastline like Denmark’s, and on the shoreline of Norway,” says researcher Jan Tveranger of Uni Research CIPR.

He has been working on creating a tool to streamline planning of offshore wind farms and provide more effective methods of installing offshore wind turbines for almost two years.

“Geology is treated unfairly. Many factors which can affect how installations can be positioned are not taken into consideration,” explains Tveranger.

“No data”

Uni Research CIPR has collaborated with both Norwegian and international companies in its work to develop the new modelling tool.

The seabed in the North Sea has been thoroughly mapped in connection with oil extraction. And the conditions on land are also well documented.

“However, there is no data on the strip between the water’s edge and 60–70 metres beyond it. Nothing has been collected on the precise area in which turbines will be placed. We simply know very little about the seabed,” says the researcher.

 

Read more about his on our webpage: uni.no