Floating Offshore Wind in California: Gross Potential for Jobs and Economic Impacts from Two Future Scenarios

Speer, Bethany¹  Keyser, David¹  Tegen, Suzanne¹ 

[1] National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

关键词: California;    offshore wind;    economic impacts;    GDP;    2050;    renewable energy;    jobs;    west coast;   

DOI  :  10.2172/1248563
RP-ID  :  NREL/TP--5000-65352
PID  :  OSTI ID: 1248563

学科分类：能源（综合）

美国|英语

来源: SciTech Connect

【 摘 要 】

Construction of the first offshore wind farm in the United States began in 2015, using fixed platform structures that are appropriate for shallow seafloors, like those located off of the East Coast and mid-Atlantic. However, floating platforms, which have yet to be deployed commercially, will likely need to anchor to the deeper seafloor if deployed off of the West Coast. To analyze the employment and economic potential for floating offshore wind along the West Coast, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has commissioned the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to analyze two hypothetical, large-scale deployment scenarios for California: 16 GW of offshore wind by 2050 (Scenario A) and 10 GW of offshore wind by 2050 (Scenario B). The results of this analysis can be used to better understand the general scales of economic opportunities that could result from offshore wind development. Results show total state gross domestic product (GDP) impacts of $16.2 billion in Scenario B or $39.7 billion in Scenario A for construction; and $3.5 billion in Scenario B or $7.9 billion in Scenario A for the operations phases.