Freight forwarders’ new role in the offshore wind industry
With a global set-up and local ownership, deugro develops transport and logistics concepts for the wind renewables industry—leveraging over 20 years of experience in delivering wind energy projects throughout more than 40 countries. deugro’s services range from feasibility studies to the delivery of complete turnkey projects.
The company’s experienced subject matter experts manage any kind of logistical scope when it comes to transporting key components—both up and downstream, for onshore and offshore wind turbines, cables and offshore substructures—using unique transport concepts, including tailor-made transport vessels and trucks that reduce costs, risks and emissions. Since 2003, deugro has successfully completed more than 210 wind energy projects in over 40 countries—a total volume of over 3,800 wind turbines equaling more than 13 million freight tons equaling over 14 gigawatts of wind power.
Current market scenario
In recent years, the offshore wind industry has experienced significant growth and development, positioning itself as a key player in the global renewable energy sector. With advancements in technology, increasing investments and a growing focus on sustainability, offshore wind farms have become a prominent source of clean energy generation. As this industry continues to expand, the logistics centered around large components has become increasingly crucial in ensuring the smooth and efficient construction of offshore wind projects. However, this does not come without challenges.
What are the current issues being faced by the industry? Supply chain challenges due to new technologies and economies of scale, a lack of regulatory model or auctions, and project installation delays during execution, as well as future anticipated growth ambitions, require the implementation of change.
We are seeing more and more delays in some of the projects executed due to variables not taken into consideration when planning the project. For instance, the number of specialized transportation and installation vessels is very limited, affecting the contracts with EPCI contractors, with very limited room for the developers and the supply chain to adapt to this.
Additionally, the industry continues to develop, and it is doing so faster than the supply chain. This means the adaptation to the new wind turbines, structures and other technologies is a learning-by-doing process—which brings us back to the same problem mentioned earlier: delays in the project.
The supply chain will not be able to adapt to market demands unless auction models anticipate change in the market and an overall schedule for each region/area is considered, to maximize port and vessel utilization and allow all partners involved to have a profitable business. All this makes it difficult to reduce costs in the wind Industry.
Freight forwarders’ new role in the offshore wind industry
Throughout the supply chain, full transparency and trust are needed in order to change the way of thinking and cope with changes like delays. A high-level approach is required to lower the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) by scheduling projects in an efficient way, which, in turn, leads to supply chain efficiency.
The logistics involved in an offshore wind project can be complex and challenging due to components’ dimensions and weights. Here is where freight forwarders can play a vital role in coordinating the movement of equipment and materials from manufacturing facilities to offshore installation sites—by bringing new solutions to the market.
To keep capital expenditure (CAPEX) as low as possible, it is crucial that all offshore vessels and equipment are utilized to the maximum extent possible. To achieve this, all required components need to be available at precisely the right moment at the right location. Freight forwarders can and will play an important role in this by providing and arranging specialized solutions to cope with schedule changes as well as limited port and equipment availability.
Therefore, deugro provides new solutions that solve these industry challenges. For example, by bringing new fleet capacity to the market and/or new holistic solutions to the current supply chain demands, we enable our clients with improved flexibility, agility and reliability as well as considerable cost savings. This can be illustrated by the following two case studies:
Case study: Ad hoc marine spread design
An example of how deugro ensures full flexibility for OEMs at the lowest cost is its Rotra vessel concept encompassing project supply vessel conversions to accommodate larger, heavier offshore wind turbine components, including a specially designed RO/RO function that has already led to significant loading risk reductions and cost savings of around 20% for the Rotra Mare and Rotra Vente. This concept is continuing with the design and construction of two new vessels, the Rotra Futura and Rotra Horizon—to be delivered in 2025 in partnership with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy and Amasus.
To date, the Rotra vessels have transported more than 11 million freight tons of offshore wind equipment, equaling more than 12 gigawatts of wind power transported and later installed offshore.
Case study: Wilhelmshaven
By providing wind industry clients intermediate storage possibilities—such as the 40 hectares of monitored and protected logistics space in the Port of Wilhelmshaven, Germany—deugro is able to provide overall savings on ocean freight, by first “collecting” a large number of components and then shipping these out in the most economical way. This can be achieved by early involvement as well as having the right contacts with the carriers and worldwide knowledge of the market. deugro’s teams are also able to combine different projects and (WTG) parts from different clients into one logistical hub, which has an economical benefit and increases flexibility for all stakeholders. These hubs can be optimized in terms of their efficiency and their utilization of port (area) and assets that are required to handle all (heavy) components.
Conclusion
As the wind sector evolves, it will become more and more important to facilitate the efficient and cost-effective transportation of components and equipment for offshore wind projects. By leveraging their expertise in logistics management, supply chain optimization and risk mitigation, freight forwarders could play a crucial role in supporting the growth of the offshore wind industry and ensuring the successful implementation of renewable energy projects on a global scale.
Freight forwarders’ expertise in navigating complex regulatory requirements, which vary from country to country, in coordinating multi-modal transportation and mitigating risks associated with offshore logistics is essential for the successful execution of wind farm developments all over the world. In conclusion, the partnership between the offshore wind industry and specialized freight forwarders exemplifies the collaborative efforts required to navigate the winds of change towards a sustainable and greener future.
Meet the author Ruben Bartolome, Director Offshore Wind Foundations, Global Wind Renewable Energy at deugro, at the upcoming Project Cargo Summit on September 17-18 in Bilbao. Register for your spot here!
