The Roadmap decisively promotes the development of offshore wind energy in Spain, defining key aspects that favor coordination between all the agents involved.
• For AEE, the objective should be to provide the continuity and visibility necessary to attract investment and consolidate an industrial and R&D fabric around the activity generated.
• Spain offers infrastructures of international reference for the technological development of offshore wind power.
• The offshore wind sector in Spain is in a position to contribute significantly to the global goals for 2030 and 2050.
After analyzing the draft of the Roadmap, the Wind Energy Business Association (PREPA) considers that the document contemplates the main aspects necessary to advance in the development of offshore wind in Spain:
- Definition of specific objectives for installed power (from 1 to 3 GW by 2030), and preliminary bases for the 2030-2050 horizon, in line with the planning of the European Union. In addition to providing the necessary visibility to attract investment and consolidate an industrial fabric, having specific objectives for offshore wind will allow more efficient articulation of the complex coordination between the multiple agents and administrations that must participate in the implementation of the roadmap.
- Establishment of a coordinated, stable and predictable regulatory framework, in terms of remuneration regime, administrative processing procedures, maritime spatial planning and connection to the network, in accordance with the objectives set.
- Definition of geographic locations, in coordination with the maritime spatial planning plans.
- Indications of the connection needs that the Transportation Network Planning must collect in the areas identified in the POEMs.
- Proposal of an accelerated deployment in the Canary Islands, which will make it possible to lower the energy bill of the islands.
On the other hand, PREPA identifies aspects that, although not contemplated in the Roadmap, may be developed regulatoryly in the short term as a short, medium and long-term implementation calendar, together with the proposal of the specific financing mechanisms for make the deployment of offshore wind in Spain viable.
Spain is a country with an international position, proven experience and great capacity for technological and industrial development in the maritime sector and, in particular, in that of marine renewable energies. The extensive and proven Spanish experience in disciplines such as wind energy, shipbuilding, civil engineering, the construction of large infrastructures (metal and concrete), the auxiliary maritime industry, maritime transport, or port management is now presented as direct application to the innovative development of the offshore wind supply chain.
For Juan Virgilio Márquez, CEO of AEE: “In Spain, despite the high innovative potential existing in offshore wind power and the efforts already made in certain areas, it is necessary to continue deepening formulas that improve the installation of real-scale demonstration prototypes and connected to the network, as well as the implementation of floating pre-commercial parks, which allow the validation of Spanish technologies under development and enable their entry into the market. In this way we will be able to approach the situation in other European countries in which a firm commitment is being made to promote floating wind technology, in line with the objectives of the EU to lead this technology, through the establishment of regulatory frameworks and specific remunerations that allow the development of innovative offshore wind projects ”.
Spain is one of the EU countries with the greatest potential for setting offshore wind targets:
• In Spain there are 6,000 kilometers of coastline available, with a stable and abundant wind resource, with sites not used so far to produce wind energy at sea. The use of these available natural resources, carried out within the framework of the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and marine resources, will contribute to the country’s evolution towards climate neutrality and at the same time will create new opportunities for growth and employment.
• Floating wind power is technically feasible in a large part of the Spanish coastline, greatly expanding the number of available sites. In addition, it is already economically efficient in certain geographical areas such as the Canary Islands, whose electricity generation costs are considerably higher.
• The important capacities of the Spanish industry, both in the wind and naval sectors, which allow the entire supply chain to be covered, and which are already exporting components for European offshore wind farms. The existence of a local market in Spain will make it possible to maintain the competitive position of the Spanish offshore industry, also increasing its contribution to GDP and the generation of qualified employment.
• The technological capabilities of the Spanish R&D sector, in offshore wind in general and in floating in particular, as we have several test platforms in our territory and multiple experimental prototypes under development by Spanish companies.
Floating wind, a technological solution made in Spain
Floating offshore wind is no longer a technological niche and allows the installation of commercial parks in deep-water locations, with exceptional wind conditions, precisely those that best suit the characteristics of the Spanish coastline.
For the 2030 horizon, a rapid evolution and maturation of floating offshore wind energy is expected in Europe, with cost reductions, reaching EUR 100-80 per MWh in 2025 and EUR 40-60 per MWh in 2030.
It is expected that in the coming years the learning curve / evolution of the cost of floating wind power will follow a similar or even faster pattern than the one that fixed foundation offshore wind has experienced in recent years.
At present there are at least three examples of floating technological solutions, with different characteristics (semi-submersible, spar and barge), which have already overcome the installation of pre-commercial projects and have demonstrated the technological maturity necessary to compete in the market. Therefore, at present there is already a guarantee of competition if competitive mechanisms are established for the installation of commercial parks, both at the level of floating technologies, as well as manufacturers of wind turbines or the rest of the components of an offshore wind farm.
AEE, on behalf of its associated companies, considers that the offshore wind sector in Spain is in a position to contribute significantly to the global objectives for 2030 and 2050.
