Ramboll's involvement in offshore wind dates back to the industry's inception. We contributed our services to the first ever commercial offshore wind farm in Horns Rev, Denmark. Since then we have gone on to produce 1,150 unique foundation designs for 17 wind farms around the world – more than any other consultant in this sector.
With the UK government planning 15% of its energy to come from renewables by 2020, and other countries setting similar targets, the need for experienced wind farm consultancy is urgent. This is especially true since more and more schemes are being developed offshore, and further offshore: in deeper waters than ever before.
While situating wind farms at sea has clear advantages – the flow of wind over the sea is more consistent and less subject to turbulence – it also raises crucial challenges. Variability in soil quality, wave loading and weather conditions place tremendous demands on the foundation structure, length of which often exceeds 60m. This is why we approach every foundation design as a bespoke unit. Each structure is individually calibrated based on our analysis of site-specific constraints. We excel at producing lightweight, robust foundations that are designed specifically for their environment, keeping materials and costs to an absolute minimum.
We have collaborated with the key names in the industry, including Repower, Siemens and Vestas, on wind farms throughout UK and Europe. We are currently working on the world's three largest offshore wind farms, which are all in the UK – Greater Gabbard, Gwynt y Mor and the London Array.