A Comparative Analysis of Construction Costs of Onshore and Shallow- and Deep-Water Offshore Wind Farms

Abstract

Recent years have seen renewed effort in the technological development of wind energy industry, where alongside onshore and shallow water offshore turbines, deep water offshore turbines have made their appearance, which represent the next frontier. One of the main aspects while developing a wind energy project is the overall cost and its breakdown between the main components. A comparative analysis of the costs associated with the different solution, the assessment of the key parameters of the wind economy, is therefore crucial when evaluating the possible investments. The aim of this work is to compare typical costs of onshore, shallow- and deep-water offshore wind farms, through an analysis of the aspects that characterize the wind economy, such as the cost of capital and operation and maintenance, and of their subheadings.