The Council of Ministers recently approved the Royal Decree implying the starting point for the start of the program necessary use of floating offshore wind energy on the Spanish coasts. One of the jobs that will be most needed is that of a marine engineer.
Now that the entire maritime sector is prepared for its deployment, yesterday’s approval in the Council of Ministers of the Royal Decree that will regulate offshore wind energy in Spain represents “the largest opportunities for naval architecture in recent decades”explains Pilar Tejo Mora-Granados, Dean of the Official College of Naval and Oceanic Engineers (COIN).
In addition, COIN offers the production of electrical energy in offshore facilities the opportunity to copy Spain’s leadership in manufacturing. of renewable energy, including in the marine field.
Together with wave and tidal energythe deployment of this technology will enable the creation of up to 40,000 new jobs and contribute 2,000 million euros per year to the national GDP, in line with the Offshore Wind and Marine Energy Roadmap and the new Integrated National Energy Plan and Climate 2023- 2030, which plans to reach 3 GW of offshore wind energy by 2030.
“We are seeing the birth of a new energy market, led by shipbuilding,” says Pilar Tejo. “There is work today and in the future and there is only one risk: the shortage of marine engineers,” he warns. “Is young talent needed; specifically, double every year for at least the next five”, as the president of AINE, Diego Fernández Casado, recalled.
Spain, leader in the design of floating wind platforms
“Spain is a pioneer in the development of floating platforms,” explains the COIN dean. A system that, in addition to the platform, also includes wind turbines that can reach a diameter of 300 meters. “Spain has already positioned itself as a spearhead, with some of the most advanced designs in the world”, he adds.
This is evident from data from the European Wind Association WindEurope 51 driving technology concepts identified on a global scale15 of these would be developed or managed by Spanish agents, in addition to an installation that would be carried out in collaboration with Canada.
The Naval Engineering and Maritime Industry Congress, organized by the Association of Naval and Oceanic Engineers of Spain (AINE), even included a section in its latest edition dedicated to wind energy of marine origin. And it was in that context that it became clear that Spain is positioned as a global power in the key energy of the future.
In terms of infrastructure and testing (demonstrators of offshore wind technology), Spain seems to be the EU country with the most experimental facilities on the open sea, such as the PLOCAN (Canary Ocean Platform), the BIMEP (Biscay Marine Energy Platform) or the future first experimental offshore wind platform from Galicia to Punta Langosteira (Galicia).
Deployment of a pioneering sector
According to the document approved by the government, 3,000 megawatts (MW) can always be installed on the sea surface until 2030 of floating wind turbines in the 19 areas demarcated in the Maritime Space Management Plans (POEM), which cover 0.46% of Spain’s territorial waters.
The projects that can be deployed with the new regulations must take into account the generation of employment, the degree of environmental impact and the degree of coexistence with other activities, aspects that count for 30% of the assessment. In addition, projects must have a positive environmental impact report.
This was announced by the head of the Wind and Marine Energy Space of the IDEA (Institute for Energy Diversification and Savings) of the Ministry for the Energy Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Juan Ramón Ayuso Ortiz, at the 63rd Congress of Naval Engineering. and Maritime Industry: “the right one The environmental sustainability approach must be taken into account when deploying offshore wind energy in Spain and social,” he explained.
Green jobs are jobs related to development of companies committed to sustainability. Offshore wind energy will be a good example of this, as it requires a lot of specialized labor, as is the case for marine engineers.