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Connection and Integration of Offshore Renewable Energy Farms into UK Power Systems - Offshore Study Scenarios Report

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Abstract:

The ETI has engaged Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) to identify the opportunity for the development of innovative solutions for the collection of electrical energy from individual and multiple offshore renewable energy farms, and the transportation of bulk electrical energy from these offshore farms to the onshore power system. The study comprises four main tasks :

  1. Offshore renewable scenarios – to define the timeline of the expected volumes of offshore renewable generation capacities
  2. State of the art of offshore network technologies – establishment of the current state of the art of offshore network technologies and their prospective future development path
  3. Analysis at individual farm level – identification of the challenges and resultant technology opportunities from connection of individual large-scale offshore wind or marine energy farms to the UKgrid system, and recommendations for connection solutions for investigation.
  4. Analysis at multiple farm level – evaluation of the optimal architecture(s) that could be developed to collect, manage and transmit back to shore the electrical energy produced by multiple, large-scale offshore renewable energy farms.
This defines appropriate scenarios of offshore generation farm type, volume, timescale and technical characteristics.The UK has considerable offshore wind, wave and tidal energy resource potential. It has been estimated that the UK’s offshore renewable resource includes an offshore wind potential of 70 GW, 21 GW of wave and 7.5 GW of tidal stream. However, although the UK’s ‘ultimate probable’ offshore renewable resource is large, the ‘economically recoverable’ offshore renewable resource, based on what could reasonably be expected to be recovered, is considerably less.

We have generated two long-term scenarios to assess the UK’s economically recoverable offshore renewable resource. ?The first looks at a ‘low’ overall renewable development out to 2050. ?The second looks at a ‘high’ overall renewable strategy out to 2050. We assess the two scenarios over the period to 2020 (short term), 2030 (medium term) and finally out to 2050 (long term). Seven cases were considered in detail:
  • Distributed Smaller Windfarms
  • Large Windfarms
  • Very Large Windfarms
  • Small Marine (tidal and wave)
  • Medium Wave
  • Large Tidal
  • Combined Tidal and Wind
Wind generation has been given priority due to the current and expected dominance of wind generation over the other marine technologies up to 2050

Publication Year:

2010

Publisher:

ETI

Author(s):

Sinclair Knight Merz

Energy Category

Language:

English

File Type:

application/pdf

File Size:

1569342 B

Rights:

Energy Technologies Institute Open Licence for Materials

Rights Overview:

The Energy Technologies Institute is making this document available to use under the Energy Technologies Institute Open Licence for Materials. Please refer to the Energy Technologies Institute website for the terms and conditions of this licence. The Information is licensed "as is" and the Energy Technologies Institute excludes all representations, warranties, obligations and liabilities in relation to the Information to the maximum extent permitted by law. The Energy Technologies Institute is not liable for any errors or omissions in the Information and shall not be liable for any loss, injury or damage of any kind caused by its use. This exclusion of liability includes, but is not limited to, any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential, punitive, or exemplary damages in each case such as loss of revenue, data, anticipated profits, and lost business. The Energy Technologies Institute does not guarantee the continued supply of the Information. Notwithstanding any statement to the contrary contained on the face of this document, the Energy Technologies Institute confirms that it has the right to publish this document.

Further information:

N/A

Region:

United Kingdom

Publication Type:

Technical Report

Theme(s):

Energy Storage and Distribution