The offshore wind industry faces a well-known paradox. It needs wind to generate electricity, but too much wind makes it difficult to create the necessary infrastructure. Quite simply, lifting major components in high winds is one of the biggest issues facing offshore wind turbine installation. Over the years, thousands of days of installation time have been lost, leading to cost increases in the billions of Euros and huge project delays.

Various remedies have been attempted, but the nut still has not been cracked. In fact, I am rather surprised at the half-hearted efforts to address the paradox. Why? Because the impact of weather downtime has far-reaching ramifications in and beyond the industry. Continue reading →