L R AS Published on Saturday 12 December 2020 - n° 344 - Categories:floating power plant
100 GW of solar power installed in the North Sea by 2030?
The Norwegian consultancy firm DNV GL estimates that the North Sea could be home to 100 GW of floating solar power plants by 2030, and
500 GW by 2035. The average cost of the energy thus produced is estimated at €354/MWh (€0.354 per kWh). This cost would gradually fall to that of ground-based solar parks, i.e. around €50 per MWh in 2030. Their economic feasibility depends on their distance from the coast and the possibility of connecting the offshore wind turbine to the grid.
Solar farms could be integrated with wind farms and constitute a complement to wind power production. The Copernicus Institute at the University of Utrecht (Netherlands) says that offshore photovoltaic power plants could be more productive than onshore panels, after running a simulation comparing a project in the North Sea with a conventional system at the Utrecht photovoltaic test field.
https://www.pv-magazine.fr/2020/12/11/le-pv-flottant-en-mer-pourrait-atteindre-sa-maturite-en-2030/
PV Magazine of 11 December
NDLR The average price of floating solar energy announced here seems high compared to the figures published elsewhere, particularly in Asia (cf. The price of electricity from a floating power station, cheaper than in France). However, it is the cost price per MWh that will determine the pace of offshore installations.
Such well-done studies never indicate their hypotheses, and always announce attractive prospects to attract the attention of the reader or the media. This does not mean that these conclusions are credible.
