The Port of Long Beach expects to begin building on its 400-acre ‘Pier Wind’ offshore wind port in 2027, at a cost of $4.7 billion. The number of floating wind turbines that will be built to meet the initial goals for offshore wind farms in Northern and Central California, according to Suzanne Plezia, Senior Director/Chief Harbour Engineer for the Port of Long Beach, will depend on the power generating capacity of the wind turbines. They have been estimated to range from 15 MW to 20 MW per turbine. This would necessitate the installation of 400-500 floating wind turbines.
Also Read: Egypt to construct 3-gigawatt wind farm in West Sohag
“The blades, nacelles, and towers are brought in by the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). Additionally, they will bring in the components, and they get staged on the land,” Plezia added. Each stage integration site is approximately 80 acres in size. Then heavy lift cranes will be on the quay side, and the floating foundation will be up against the quay. Further, the cranes will assemble each piece onto the floating foundation and build up the wind turbine with the nacelle. They will then put the blades on. Finally, the assembled unit will be commissioned, and it can be commissioned right there at the quay or at an adjacent site.” “Once everything is commissioned, it will be towed out to the wind farm for installation,” she continued.
How many jobs the Port of Long Beach wind project will create
Plezia is certain that a workforce can be found to build the wind farms, which she estimates would require 2,000 to 3,000 employees. Plezia stated that the Port provides public infrastructure that enables “private equity”. “Private equity will be authorised, but without port infrastructure, it will not be possible. The question is how much public financing is available. I believe it will be a blend of public and private.”
