Odra Energia floating offshore wind farm project

On Wednesday 29 December, Odra Energia will file an application for ministerial authorisation for its floating offshore wind farm project off the southern coast of the province of Lecce. In a change to the original plans for the project, the distance from the coast to the turbines has now been increased by 30% to a minimum distance of 12.8 km offshore.

The change in location of the turbines further out to sea comes in response to discussions with local communities held by Odra Energia before embarking on the authorisation process and has involved a technical redesign and revision of the economic case for the wind farm as it impacts on construction, operation and maintenance.

The proposed Odra Energia offshore wind farm project would have:

• annual production of clean energy estimated at around 4 terawatt hours (TWh), equivalent to the consumption of more than one million families and avoiding the emission of more than 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year;
• 90 floating wind turbines with an expected maximum installed capacity of approximately 1.3 GW. The blades will be located between 12.8 km and 24 km from the coast.

From the mainland the perceived height of the closest turbines will be 1.4 cm.

The proposed project will generate direct and indirect benefits in terms of local manpower (1,500 direct jobs are estimated for the construction of the park, arising to 4,000 during peak periods), business opportunities for local companies and collaboration with universities and research centres.

The revised sea concession application will also be registered with the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Southern Adriatic Sea Port System Authority.

The project website OdraEnergia.it is now online and includes updated animated panoramic simulations of the view of the wind farm from a variety of viewpoints including Capo d’Otranto, Castro Marina, Tricase and Santa Maria di Leuca. More viewpoints will be added over the coming months.