Open Access

Dennis Tillenburg

• Floating offshore wind (FOW) holds the key to 80 % of the total offshore wind resources, located in waters of 60 m and deeper in European seas, where traditional bottom-fixed offshore wind (BFOW) is not economically attractive. Many problems affecting floating offshore wind turbines (FOWT) were quickly overcome based on previous experience with floating oil rigs and bottom-fixed offshore wind. However, this technology is still young and there are still many challenges to overcome. This paper shows that electrical failures are amongst the most significant errors of FOWT. The most common cause was corrosion. It is also stated that the control system is most often affected, and that the Generator is frequently involved. Material corrosion is also the key factor when it comes to the most common overall reason for failures. A particular attention must be paid to mooring line fracture. Mooring lines are especially vulnerable to extreme sea conditions and the resulting fatigue, corrosion, impact damage, and further risks. It must be stated that the primary challenge is that of economics. Over time technological costs will decline making FOW more competitive and hence attractive for greater depth.