In the offshore industry, water depth is crucial to the
design, cost and schedule of installed systems. In the
alternative energy industry, critical components that
are keyed to water depth include structures and
cabling. Deeper water equates to more critical design
of the:
• Structure tower or gravity base
• Power Cable design and;
• Subsea electrical components
The permitting process generally becomes less
involved with increased distance from shore. This is
the current state of affairs for the industry. However, in
general, the further offshore you venture the deeper
the water depth and the higher the cost.
The deep water challenges can be summed up as
follows:
1. Larger offshore structures to reach the seabed
and larger surface machinery required to install
the larger structures.
2. Increased weight of large diameter power
cables in deeper waters requiring the use of
larger cable handling machines for installation.
3. Larger crane handling capability for lifting and
lowering objects to the seabed.