INTERVIEW - Tapping into the Black Sea's offshore wind potential

Hooracán Energy has recently unveiled that it is developing a 3-GW portfolio of four pre-exclusivity offshore wind projects in the Black Sea, off the coasts of Bulgaria and Romania, as the two countries are advancing the regulatory framework for the offshore wind industry.

Formed just two years ago as an early-stage developer, London-based Hooracán aims to lay the groundwork for the development of offshore wind in the Black Sea, its chief executive Alex Gospodinov told Renewables Now in an interview.

The objective is to create favourable conditions for large investors with big capital resources and expertise to step in and continue together the development of the projects. Over the last two years, Gospodinov and his team have been working to simplify market entry for such investors by minimising risks and completing preliminary permitting and surveying work.

BLACK SEA'S OFFSHORE WIND POTENTIAL

Two factors make offshore wind in the Black Sea attractive, according to Gospodinov. These are the anticipated cost competitiveness of the technology at the time projects in the region could be implemented and the increasing electricity demand combined with the composition of the Bulgarian power mix where coal and existing nuclear capacity will have to be displaced with renewables.

"The potential is huge in terms of onshore development in Bulgaria but it feels like most of it is probably in solar because the wind resource onshore is not that good. The good wind resource is to the northeast of the country and that's why ten, 15 years ago, there was a lot of development," Gospodinov said.

Looking ahead to 2030 when the first projects in the Black Sea could be nearing commissioning, the levelised cost of energy for offshore wind is expected to fall, potentially rivalling onshore renewables, according to him. Floating turbines are likely to be the preferred technology given the narrow continental shelf of the Black Sea. And unlike onshore wind, where taller towers are needed in areas with slower wind speeds, driving up costs exponentially, offshore wind offers consistent and stronger wind resources. Additionally, the need for battery storage is anticipated to increase for onshore projects due to intermittency, further affecting their cost competitiveness compared to offshore wind.

In addition, global trends such as digitalisation and the increasing electrification of transport and heating are expected to drive growing electricity demand in Bulgaria. To attract companies in the digital sector to do business in Bulgaria, there is a need for infrastructure and reliable access to affordable electricity.

Offshore wind has the potential not only to meet increasing domestic demand, but also enable Bulgaria to export electricity to other European countries like Hungary, Serbia, and Germany, which are experiencing their own growth.

HOORACAN'S OFFSHORE WIND SITES

Driven by these two factors -- cost competitiveness and demand, Hooracán identified in the summer of 2022 suitable locations in the Black Sea with favourable wind resources and bathymetry. Subsequently, they submitted an unsolicited proposal to the Ministry of Energy. Three of the four locations identified by Hooracán are off Bulgaria's northeast coast, the fourth one is in Romanian waters.

Over the past 12 months, Hooracán has been actively engaging with various stakeholders, including different ministries at both the central and regional levels in the cities of Varna and Dobrich, as well as with the local business community, gathering feedback from them with comments, and observations.

Additionally, they have initiated conversations with fishermen to address their concerns and educate them about offshore wind energy. These efforts aim to alleviate fears and demonstrate that coexistence with offshore wind projects is feasible through proper communication and education.

Hooracán has gathered data on the route of every fishing boat and the time spent in the areas of their project sites which allows for constructive conversations with fishermen.

Meanwhile, the law concerning offshore wind is currently in the Bulgarian Parliament. Hooracan sees the political willingness to advance the regulation and plans to provide comments on the law during this process.

Things are expected to start moving towards the end of 2025 in both Romania and Bulgaria, when it should be known where the two governments want to have offshore wind farms and the legislation around the tenders and concessions is in place as well.

Gospodinov highlighted that Bulgaria is not late on the development of port infrastructure, but it needs to promptly address the issue, potentially through engagement with development banks, to develop Varna as a port for offshore wind construction. He does not expect Varna and Constanza in Romania to develop equally as ports with large capacities for offshore wind construction due to their proximity. Which of the two will be preferred will depend on whichever country is first to expand the associated infrastructure.

In addition, Hooracán has a cooperation agreement with Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy in Varna to do research on the projects and plan to come up with a structured programme designed to upskill students so that they can be employed in offshore wind.

Gospodinov is optimistic that investors will be attracted to developing offshore wind energy in the Black Sea. "From a demand perspective, there will be demand for electricity and the cost of that electricity from offshore wind will be competitive. And for that reason, there will be an investor, of course, that will come in and capitalise on that," he said.

He expects that the first wind turbines in the Black Sea could begin producing electricity in 2031-2032

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