OFFSHORE WIND: RESOURCE CHARACTERIZATION, CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS, AND
MULTI-CONSTRAINT STUDIES
Abstract
We will discuss several results regarding a wind energy resource
assessment based on data from the climate UPSCALE model and using the
offshore waters of Mexico as a case study. The UPSCALE dataset used is
based on the HadGEM3-GA3.0 configuration of the Met Office Unified Model
(MetUM) version 8.0, combined with the GL3.0 congufiration of the JULES
community land surface model. First, a resource characterization at a
national scale is presented, where we stress the importance of the
extrapolation techniques and of air density changes in the estimation of
the wind power density. Then, we present an analysis of climate change
effects on offshore wind energy resources under the RCP8.5 climate
change scenario, showing that such effects are strongly site specific.
We close with a techno-socio-ecological study for a smaller, test
region, corresponding to the Central and Upper Gulf of California, and
show that even under the most restrictive scenario, more than 68% of
Mexico’s 2017 energy production could still come from offshore wind
energy farm developments in this region alone.