Wind energy potential assessment in western Mediterranean

Wind energy investments have met a quick growth during the last decades due to the stricter climate policies, the need for energy independence and the higher profits coming from the smaller costs of such applications. Moreover the evolution of technology leads to the characterization of more areas as suitable for energy applications. Offshore wind farms are a nice example of how to build bigger, more efficient and resistant in extreme conditions wind power plants.

The present work is focused on the determination of the suitability of an offshore marine area for the development of wind farm structures. More specifically the region of interest is the marine area on the south of France including the Gulf of Leon. For the needs of the study a 10-year database, produced employing state of the art atmospheric and wave models, is utilized. The wind and wave parameters used, have a spatial resolution of 6 km and a frequency of one hour.

Wind speed and power probability distribution characteristics are discussed in different heights throughout the domain. Particular locations are selected for a more comprehensive analysis. At the same time extreme wind and wave conditions and their 50-years return period are analyzed and used to define the safety level of the wind farms structural characteristics. The outcome could lead to a review of the area suitability for wind farm development, providing a new tool for technical/research teams and decision makers.