Skip to main content

Floating Offshore Wind

Floating Wind Turbine Designs
Capturing energy from offshore wind using floating foundations.

Offshore wind energy technologies harness kinetic energy from the wind to generate energy and transport that energy back to shore via a subsea export cable. The main advantage of offshore wind energy is access to stronger and more consistent winds, allowing for the use of larger turbines. The development of offshore wind in Europe and Asia has preceded development activities in other parts of the world; however, several projects in the United States are currently underway. Several floating offshore wind energy demonstrations exist throughout the world, but the technology is yet to be widely deployed.

Floating foundations are used at deep depths (40->1000m) and consist of a balanced floating substructure moored to the seabed with fixed cables. The substructure may be stabilized using buoyancy, mooring lines, or a ballast. Several designs for floating offshore wind substructures currently exist for various depth ranges, including barges, semi-submersibles, tension leg platforms, and single point anchorage buoys. These substructures are connected to one another via inter-array cables, which transport electricity generated from the turbine to floating offshore substations. High voltage export cables then transport the energy to shore. To better understand floating offshore wind, explore these videos from RWE.

The environmental concerns associated with offshore wind farms vary with foundation type. In general, collision risk with birds and bats is a major concern, though the impact is more difficult to quantify offshore because carcasses that provide evidence of collisions become lost at sea. As with all electricity generation, there is a slight concern that electromagnetic fields generated by power cables may affect animals that use Earth's natural magnetic field for orientation, navigation, and hunting. Although pile driving is one of the main concerns surrounding fixed offshore wind energy, floating projects can be constructed onshore and transported out to sea, reducing the impacts from construction-related noise and vessels. Floating foundation’s mooring lines may cause minor scouring or pose a risk of collision or entrapment, but the turbine foundation is mostly located in the upper layer of the water column where there tend to be less organisms.

Photo Credit: Joshua Bauer, NREL

Marine and Wind Energy Environmental Documents

Tethys is a knowledge hub that contains documents on the environmental effects of wind and marine energy. The table below contains all of the documents in the Tethys Knowledge Base associated with Floating Offshore Wind.

Total: 804

Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
The contribution of ocean-based solutions to carbon reduction in China Feng, C., Ye, G., Jiang, Q. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions
FLOATGEN floating wind turbine environmental monitoring report, SEM-REV test site Reynaud, M., Le Bouhris, E., Soulard, T. Report Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind EMF, Noise Birds, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions
Monitoring and Modeling Tree Bat (Genera: Lasiurus, Lasionycteris) Occurrence Using Acoustics on Structures off the Mid-Atlantic Coast—Implications for Offshore Wind Development True, M., Reynolds, R., Ford, W. Journal Article Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Collision Bats
Supporting National Environmental Policy Act Documentation for Offshore Wind Energy Development Related to Munitions and Explosives of Concern and Unexploded Ordnances Middleton, P., Salerno, J., Barnhart, B. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy
Hywind Scotland Ornithological Monitoring Programme: Overwintering distributions of common guillemot and razorbill populations in Eastern Scotland Bogdanova, M., Buckingham, L., Newell, M. Report Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Habitat Change Birds
Floating offshore wind turbine aerodynamics: Trends and future challenges Micallef, D., Rezaeiha, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow
Oceanic records of North American bats and implications for offshore wind energy development in the United States Solick, D., Newman, C. Journal Article Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Attraction Bats
Automatic Segregation of Pelagic Habitats Plonus, R-M., Vogl, S., Floeter, J. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Physical Environment, Human Dimensions
Offshore Wind Energy NOPSEMA Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind
Digital Aerial Baseline Survey of Marine Wildlife in Support of Offshore Wind Energy: Volume 2: Results (Birds) Pembroke, A., Robinson Willmott, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Marine Mammals
A Review of Biodiversity Data Needs and Monitoring Protocols for the Offshore Wind Energy Sector in the Baltic Sea and North Sea Stephenson, P. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Water Quality
Bayesian network modelling provides spatial and temporal understanding of ecosystem dynamics within shallow shelf seas Trifonova, N., Scott, B., De Dominicis, M. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions
Digital Aerial Baseline Survey of Marine Wildlife in Support of Offshore Wind Energy: Volume 5: Results (Sharks and Rays) Pembroke, A., Robinson Willmott, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind
Digital Aerial Baseline Survey of Marine Wildlife in Support of Offshore Wind Energy: Volume 3: Results (Turtles) Pembroke, A., Robinson Willmott, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Marine Mammals, Reptiles, Sea Turtles, Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning
State of Maine Offshore Wind Energy Research Array: Application for an Outer Continental Shelf Renewable Energy Research Lease State of Maine Report Tidal, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Bats, Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Reptiles, Sea Turtles, Human Dimensions, Stakeholder Engagement
Methods Toolkit for Participatory Engagement and Social Research Haggett, C., Mabon, L. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
Digital Aerial Baseline Survey of Marine Wildlife in Support of Offshore Wind Energy: Volume 4: Results (Marine Mammals) Pembroke, A., Robinson Willmott, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Marine Mammals
Cumulative impacts of wind farms on the North Sea ecosystem Piet, G., Tamis, J., van der Wal, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions
The Design, Production and Validation of the Biological and Structural Performance of an Ecologically Engineered Concrete Block Mattress – A Nature Inclusive Design for Shoreline and Offshore construction Sella, I., Hadary, T., Rella, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Invertebrates, Physical Environment
Design, production, and validation of the biological and structural performance of an ecologically engineered concrete block mattress: A Nature-Inclusive Design for shoreline and offshore construction Sella, I., Hadary, T., Rella, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Invertebrates
Offshore Wind Development and Marine Mammals Marine Mammal Commission Summary Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Displacement, Habitat Change, Vessel Strike Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Pinnipeds
American Bird Conservancy Comments on the Morro Bay Offshore Wind Call for Information American Bird Conservancy Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Human Dimensions
Comments on Commercial Leasing for Wind Power Development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Offshore Morro Bay, California, East and West Extensions Flick, P., Hislop, K., Humphries, E. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Bats, Birds, Fish, Reptiles
Identifying Ecological Metrics and Sampling Strategies for Baseline Monitoring During Offshore Wind Development Brodie, J., Kohut, J., Zemeckis, D. Workshop Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Fish, Human Dimensions, Fisheries, Marine Spatial Planning
Life Cycle Assessment of a Barge-Type Floating Wind Turbine and Comparison with Other Types of Wind Turbines Yildiz, N., Hemida, H., Baniotopoulos, C. Journal Article Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Life Cycle Assessment
What is the value of innovative offshore renewable energy deployment to the UK economy? Cochrane, C., Pennock, S., Jeffrey, H. Report Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
Socio-economic impact of a 200 MW floating wind farm in Gran Canaria Schallenberg-Rodriguez, J., Inchausti-Sintes, F. Journal Article Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
Year 2 Digital Aerial Wildlife Survey of BOEM Lease Area OCS-A 520 Monthly Report (Year 2): May I 2021 Arundale, M., Warford, S., Willmott, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Marine Mammals
Year 2 Digital Aerial Wildlife Survey of BOEM Lease Area OCS-A 520 Monthly Report (Year 2): May II 2021 Arundale, M., Warford, S., Willmott, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Marine Mammals
European Scalable Offshore Renewable Energy Source (EU-SCORES) Francisco Correia da Fonseca Research Study Marine Energy, Wave, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Changes in Flow, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Demersal Fish, Pelagic Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Fisheries, Legal & Policy, Marine Spatial Planning
Distance-Based Sampling Methods for Assessing the Ecological Effects of Offshore Wind Farms: Synthesis and Application to Fisheries Resource Studies Methratta, E. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Physical Environment, Fish, Invertebrates, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
Floating Offshore Wind and Fishing Interaction Roadmap Eatough, L. Report Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Fish, Human Dimensions, Fisheries, Stakeholder Engagement
Comparison of Environmental Effects from Different Offshore Wind Turbine Foundations (2021 Revision) Horwath, S., Hassrick, J., Grismala, R. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Water Quality, Reptiles
Modeling At-Sea Density of Marine Birds to Support Renewable Energy Planning on the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf of the Contiguous United States Leirness, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Marine Mammals
Experimental and numerical aeroacoustic analysis of an ultrasound whistle Zeng, Z., Sharma, A. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Collision Bats
Floating Offshore Wind Development and Consenting Process – Risks and Opportunities Fairgrieve, R., Wellard, K., Trigg, C. Report Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions
Draft Preliminary Environmental Assessment: Vandenberg Offshore Wind Energy Projects California State Lands Commission Report Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Fisheries, Visual Impacts
State of the Sector 2021: Economic Benefits for Wales Marine Energy Wales Report Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Social & Economic Data
Conservation Organizations Comments on June 21, 2021 OSW Workshop Cullum, L., Hislop, K., Aylesworth, S. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Habitat Change Birds, Marine Mammals
Modeling Small Scale Impacts of Multi-Purpose Platforms: An Ecosystem Approach Serpetti, N., Benjamins, S., Brain, S. Journal Article Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions, Fisheries

Displaying 481 - 520 of 804 results