The goal of this work is to carry out an economic analysis of a novel floating offshore wind structure, of which the main material is concrete: the SATH® platform. It takes a step forward in floating marine wind energy research, in which traditional platforms are mainly composed of steel. The technique to calculate the costs of the platform and the economic parameters to decide if the farm is economically feasible are explained in the paper. This case study analyzes a possible farm of 500 MW located in Portugal and several scenarios considering different electric tariffs and capital costs (Scenario 1: electric tariff of 50 €/MWh and 6% of capital cost; Scenario 2: electric tariff of 50 €/MWh and 8% of capital cost; Scenario 3: electric tariff of 150 €/MWh and 6% of capital cost; Scenario 4: electric tariff of 150 €/MWh and 8% of capital cost). Results show the economic feasibility of a farm with the characteristics of Scenarios 3 and 4. This work is significant in order to provide a new approach to analyzing traditional floating offshore wind structures, which can represent a path towards the future of floating offshore renewable energy technologies.

The objective of this paper is to examine the economic aspects of a concrete offshore wind floating platform in the Atlantic Arc of Europe (Portugal and Spain). The life-cycle cost of a concrete floating offshore wind platform is considered to calculate the main economic parameters that will define the economic feasibility of the offshore wind farm. The case of study is the concrete floating offshore wind platform Telwind®, a spar platform with a revolutionary way of installing using a self-erecting telescopic tower of the wind turbine. In addition, the study analyses thirteen locations in Spain and twenty in Portugal, including the Atlantic islands of both countries. Results indicate that the economically feasible location to install a concrete offshore wind farm composed of concrete platforms is the Canary Islands (Spain) and Flores (Portugal).

The objective of this work is to establish a framework for the development of an economic analysis tool for floating offshore wind platforms built in concrete. The operation and usefulness of the beta version of a software, called Arcwind, is explained. It calculates the main economic aspects of offshore wind platforms built in concrete considering different locations in the European Atlantic Arc. This software allows the user to select different input parameters such as: the type of platform, the installation area of the farm, its specific location and in this way create different analysis scenarios. This paper analyzes the case study to install TELWIND® offshore concrete floating platforms in the Canary Islands, in Spain. The software provides data on the main economic parameters of the farm, such as Levelized Cost Of Energy (LCOE), Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Pay-Back Period (PBP), as well as the main costs: cost of conception and definition, cost of design and development, cost of manufacturing, cost of installation, cost of operation and cost of dismantling. Using these parameters, a first analysis of the viability of this type of floating technology built on concrete is shown.

Abstract. Every nations' development lies on the electricity production, since it facilitates life and development of their society (heating, lighting, etc.). Nevertheless, conventional power plants, which use fossil fuels, cause environmental impacts, such as global warming, acidification, eutrophication, among many others. In addition, these conventional resources generate a dependence of external providers, which obstructs the progress of the developing countries. Renewable energies came to solve part of these problems. In this context, wind energy is one the technologies with more expansion all over the world. Offshore locations have a better wind resource than onshore ones and their exploitation is lower. The objective of this work is to present a holistic approach to assess the feasibility of a floating offshore wind farms in a life cycle perspective. The methodology proposed analyses the Net Present Value, the Internal Rate of Return, the Payback Period and the Levelized Cost of Energy of the farm. The case study is built based on a disruptive floating spar-type platform called TELWIND®, to be implemented in the Atlantic Area region. Results indicate how important these parameters are in economic terms and shows the pathways to reduce the costs of this type of infrastructures Furthermore, the methodology proposed allows the selection of the best region where a floating offshore wind farm can be installed. Finally, this study can be useful for Governments and relevant authorities to determine the best location of a floating offshore wind farm and develop the roadmap of offshore wind in their country.

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