Jorge J Malfeito, Accione Agua, Spain. Synergy between RO desalination and offshore wind power.
Offshore wind energy adoption is driven by: increases in the demand for energy; increases in the cost of fossil fuels, and government support (Spain is cited by Malfeito).
Malfeito notes that there are several advantages of offshore wind production such as larger scale project opportunities, less turbulence and lower environmental impact [sic].
By comparison to land-based wind power offshore wind energy is said by Malfeito to require twice the initial investment and six times the maintenance cost. This includes the challenges involved with offshore installation and grid connection.
Malfeito says there are 38 operational offshore wind farms in Europe and more than 160 in planning. In Spain there are 32 projects planned. Europe has the largest share of global offshore wind production and this is likely to remain: in 2020 75% of installed offshore wind energy will remain in Europe.
The Spanish EOLIA project is a Spanish government funded project promoting the development of offshore wind production and technology. Malfeito highlighted the opportunities for offshore wind supported RO, not least the spatial coincidences.
It’s possible to use direct mechanical power from offshore wind – possibly generating lower pressures required for onshore pumping and pre-treatment of seawater prior to RO.
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