Drilling for Oil is not the only Potential Energy Producing Activity Offshore While "green" or renewable energy technologies are often seen as the rival against traditional fossil fuel technologies in some kind of epic battle, they can actually sometimes enhance and support each other. Recent news from wind power companies suggests that they may be able to move their turbines offshore to deep water out of sight of land and away from wind-blocking obstructions by employing technology developed for deep water oil and gas exploration and production operations.
This recent article in The Economist, reviews recent advances and planning for off shore wind energy production. While near-shore wind farms have been proposed (near coastal Massachusetts and Texas) in the United States, none have actually begun construction. Delays caused by opposition to the aesthetics or potential environmental problems of the wind turbines sites have plagued these plans. Near the United Kingdom and Denmark, offshore wind farms are already in operation, but they include turbines that are mounted to fixed foundations on the floor of the sea.
Offshore, with no obstructions to the flow of the wind, the average wind speed is double that over the land. Since, the energy contained in a flowing gas follows an exponential law, the same turbine could generate significantly more energy when placed offshore than it could on land. For example, wind blowing at 10 meters per second contains five times the energy of wind blowing half that fast.
In addition to greatly increased energy output and decreased worry about public opposition, comes the knowledge that these floating wind turbines are based on proven technology (floating oil and gas platforms). The Gulf of Mexico alone currently contains thousands of these platforms operating in deep water. At the very least, these floating turbines provide a means for these sites in the gulf to continue producing energy long after the oil and gas has been consumed. [ad name="Adsense Small Horz Banner"] There are a few potential challenges to fully implementing this technology that we should be aware of, however. One is that due to the harsh environment such as severe storms, the turbines may prove to be maintenance nightmares. The other is that an electric infrastructure will have to be built between whatever body of water the turbines are floating in and the mainland. While this is also proven technology, it does limit the distance from land at which these turbines can be placed. Don't expect to see turbines floating in the middle of the Pacific Ocean anytime soon. That said, these challenges are relatively minor compared to other potential clean energy improvements.
In the near future, expect to see the traditional oil and gas producers get involved in this technology. As they already have working relationships with the floating platform builders and they already perform regular maintenance in the areas where these wind turbines might be placed. As a method of diversification into non-fossil fuel energy sources with a guaranteed near term payback, this is an ideal technology from most energy companies' perspective.