Developing the port infrastructure needed to deploy offshore wind

After the construction of an offshore wind farm, the wind farm owner needs to monitor the farm’s performance and perform regular turbine maintenance for 20+ years. O&M ports are the long-term, land-based hub for these activities.

O&M port facilities typically consist of two parts: a vessel berth and onshore facilities. Preferably, these two parts are located next to each other, however the onshore facilities can be located near to but not at the port if there is a lack of space at the port itself.

The onshore facilities typically include a control room for performance monitoring, a small office space, a moderately sized commercial warehouse to store spare components, an onshore workshop area, crew change areas, and centralized crew parking.

The U.S. federal government aims to deploy 30 GW of offshore wind generation by 2030 and 110 GW by 2050. States along the Pacific, Atlantic and Gulf Coasts are now actively working to reach this target.

California has set goals to deploy 2-5 GW of offshore wind by 2030 and 25 GW by 2045. These targets are important to the State’s ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85% and cut oil usage by 94% by 2045.

In support of these goals, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management auctioned three Wind Energy Area leases off California’s Central Coast in December 2022, generating over $425 million in public proceeds.

The State of California’s Ports Readiness Plan (July 2023) identified Port San Luis as a high-potential location for an operations and maintenance (O&M) port facility.

In response, the Port San Luis Harbor District adopted Resolution 23-13 in December 2023 to begin engagement with the offshore wind industry on potential port uses and development options that could help bring long-term benefits to the region.

To perform maintenance on offshore turbines the wind farm owner will use a Service Operation Vessel (SOV). This vessel, which is purpose-built for offshore wind, is typically 250-300 feet in length and can accommodate up to 100 wind technicians and crew.

Typically, the SOV will dock at the port once every two-to-three weeks for a period of 12-to-24 hours. During that time, the vessel’s provisions are restocked and one service technician team departs the vessel and a second team comes onboard. The SOV otherwise stays out at sea at the wind farm serving as a floating service facility and hotel.

Beyond SOVs, additional vessel traffic to and from an O&M facility is typically relatively light, with port calls generally limited to other small and medium-sized offshore wind vessels such as survey vessels, tugs, geotechnical vessels, and wildlife/fish monitoring vessels. Being designed strictly for offshore wind, the Port would not be used by container, tanker or large break bulk vessels.

O&M ports are typically 3-5 acres, most of which is taken up by the onshore facilities (e.g. office, training rooms, storage of provisions and equipment). This means that O&M port facilities are much smaller than other offshore wind ports such as the S&I terminals proposed in Humboldt Bay and Long Beach which are several hundred acres and require several thousand feet of continuous berth space. A typical SOV requires up to a 350 to 400-foot berth.

No, large wind turbine components are not brought in and out of an O&M port. If major component maintenance is required, turbines are typically towed directly back to a staging and integration (S&I) port such as the projects being developed in Long Beach and Humboldt Bay.

An O&M port anchors long-term jobs and economic activity from offshore wind projects in its host community for at least 20-30 years (and likely longer).

SOV’s are typically manned by two separate crews of 65-100 individuals that rotate every two weeks. Job types include wind turbine technicians, vessel operations staff, and hospitality staff. At the onshore facilities, long-term jobs typically include operations center staff, marine affairs planners, workshop technicians, and warehouse and security.

Routine maintenance activities on an offshore wind farm must be carried out on a predictable schedule for 20-30 years. This results in stable and long-term employment opportunities. Given the importance of a stable workforce and skills mix wind developers will often look to partner with local universities and trades colleges to create skills pathways, such as wind technician apprenticeship programs.

Beyond the typical 150-200 direct jobs per wind farm that an O&M port would create, the O&M port is a source of significant additional benefit for its host community. O&M bases for offshore wind projects, typically utilize a range of goods and services from nearby businesses. Typically, we see professional services firms, local marine services businesses, local parts suppliers, and local hotels and restaurants realize new opportunities when a new O&M port is set up in their community. An O&M port is effectively the landside operations for a major power generation facility.

Wind developers are strongly incentivized to build and sustain this goods and services capacity within the local region, for example by supporting local businesses to scale their workforce of equipment inventory, in order to derisk operations over the long-term.

Absent targeted initiatives, Central Coast communities will see the jobs and economic benefits created by wind farms built off the Central Coast coastline flow to Northern and Southern California. An O&M port is the Central Coast’s best opportunity to maximize its share of benefits while minimizing the scope and impact from infrastructure development.

For example, it will enable students and professors from Cal Poly University, Cuesta Community College, and Allan Hancock College to be at the forefront of educational, research, and employment opportunities in offshore wind.

Facility construction will support work for local tradespeople and contractors. The project will also create a new revenue stream for the Port San Luis Harbor District, which could support investments in tourism and sustainability.

 Additional uses of the port facility, such as aquaculture or maritime tourism, could also be evaluated as part of a feasibility assessment.

CET is seeking to develop a project that protects the environmental, cultural, and recreational resources of Port San Luis and the surrounding communities, including Tribal cultural resources. It is committed to supporting a rigorous, thoughtful, and transparent environmental review process in compliance with all state and federal requirements, including for example California’s Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Ultimately, CET expects that all its projects will meet the highest environmental standards, supporting the use of next-generation clean vessel and port operations technologies.