Harbor would need upgrades to support offshore wind
Cost would depend on size of the devices being installed
The upgrades needed for Humboldt Bay’s port infrastructure to support offshore wind research depends on the size of the devices being installed and whether there would be onsite or offsite fabrication of the project’s components.
Improvements to accommodate small to large facilities would cost $50 million to $100 million while larger facilities would cost $150 million to $300 million, Aaron Porter, project researcher at engineering consulting firm Mott Macdonald, said during a webinar on offshore wind research by the Schatz Energy Research Center at Humboldt State University on Monday. An additional marine terminal to support fabrication of the wind farm components could be $50 million to $100 million, or less depending on some of the details, Porter said.
“The navigation channel looks like it can likely support offshore wind projects in general, but device size needs to be coordinated with the throughput requirements for the project,” Porter said. “Bigger devices with the same channel geometry would have less throughput per year because there would be more constraints on towing those devices out.”
Shane Phillips, a project researcher at consultant Mott Macdonald, pointed to a 2016 Bureau of Ocean Energy Management study that found that Humboldt Bay already had high potential for development to support offshore wind farms.
There are multiple reasons for that, such as the types of ships that are needed are extremely tall and there are no bridges along the navigation channel, he said.
T here’s also enough available water depth; the port is in close proximity to the Humboldt Call Area 20 miles off the coast, which would minimize transit time; and the harbor is protected and would allow for the assembly of devices, something that’s more challenging in open water, Phillips said.
S ome improvement s would still be needed and the researchers were focused on two factors, the import of components and the towing out of assembled devices, Porter said.
“We have pretty good confidence that the existing infrastructure can meet the needs for the component delivery vessels since it meets the needs for forest products vessels,” Phillips said.