Wind

Equinor kickstarts floating wind off California with Ocean Infinity deepwater survey contract

Marine technology firm will deploy unmanned subsea drones to collect data in deep waters up to 1,200 metres

Equinor kickstarted California floating wind development in Morro Bay with a contract for underwater site investigation with Anglo-American marine technology firm Ocean Infinity, launching the Golden State towards its 25GW by 2045 target.

Equinor won the 80,000-acre (324km2) lease some 20 miles (32 km) off the coast of Central California in the federal auction last December for $130m, the lowest price paid across all five zones.

The lease, which holds at least 1GW of capacity, is located the farthest west in Morro Bay wind energy area (WEA), in waters ranging from 500-1,200 metres, far deeper than has ever been attempted for floating wind development.

Ocean Infinity will deploy a fleet of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to explore the area to provide critical data for the developer’s site assessment (SAP) and construction and operations (COP) plans.

"The US West Coast with its challenging deep water topography presents another excellent opportunity for Ocean Infinity to deliver the value of its multi-AUV capabilities for its clients,” said Shawntel Johnson, director of business development at Ocean Infinity.

Ocean Infinity, which has conducted similar surveys for offshore wind developers in the North Sea, said that AUVs at scale “are the perfect tool for this region providing not only great data quality advantages over towed arrays, in the water depths spanning from 974 to 1317 metres, but also huge efficiency over wide areas."

The project is set to commence in February 2024.

Procurement bill

Floating wind development in the Golden State took another leap forward last week with the passage of a procurement bill establishing a centralised authority to sign giga-scale offtake contracts with developers.

The bill, AB 1373, authorises the Department of Water Resources to take on the additional role of central buyer of uncontracted clean energy resources, and is expected to be signed by governor Gavin Newsom, Democrat, shortly.
Lack of clear route-to-market was a key factor, along with extreme water depths, that resulted in the underwhelming auction last year.

Only seven out of some 43 qualified bidders turned up to bid on five leases in Central and Northern California holding some 7GW of potential capacity, netting the federal government $757m, around $2,000/acre, far off demand seen in the established markets of the Northeast.

The state also needs billions of investment into its onshore grid to incorporate the expected 7GW of floating wind potential in the existing leases.

It further lacks port capacity despite its lengthy coastline, particularly near Morro Bay.

Only one – the Port of Humboldt Bay located near the Humboldt WEA – has been tipped for floating wind marshalling and installation but is some 800km away from Morro Bay.
The Port of Long Beach in Southern California has proposed a 400-acre Floating Wind Terminal proposal that would cost between $4-$7bn.

Long Beach is likewise a considerable distance at 446km from Morro Bay, though, and floating wind turbines assembled there would need to be towed through the heavily congested sea lanes of the Channel Islands while contending with potential height restrictions near Los Angeles International Airport and Vandenburg Space Force Base.

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Published 20 September 2023, 16:37Updated 2 October 2023, 16:38
AmericasUSCaliforniaGavin NewsomEquinor