Grid value of co-located offshore renewable energy

Abstract

The paper investigates the added grid value of co-locating wave energy converters with offshore
wind turbine generators and floating photovoltaic solar panels. Grid value is evaluated in terms of
power generation variability and electrical infrastructure utilization. Using meteorological reanalysis
data for the region of the North Sea, wave, solar and wind energy converters are modelled on an
hourly basis to form the power profile of the joint operation. Necessary power ratings of the
transmission system are provided both for stand-alone installations and the hybrid parks and is
shown to be of higher utilization for the latter case. Suitable locations of hybrid parks are also
analyzed and provided in terms of water depth, solar irradiation and favorable wave and wind
climate. The joint operation is found to smoothen the power profile on all time scales but influences
long term variations most heavily. Added grid value strongly depends on the park configuration as
well as metocean conditions. It is shown that by co-locating wave, solar and wind energy converters
the utilization of the electrical transmission system is increased compared to stand-alone
installations.