Coupled wind–wave simulation and LCOE analysis of a SPAR floating offshore wind farm off Gujarat, India

In recent years, interest has grown in floating offshore wind systems, though current developments are largely limited to prototypes with limited economic insight. This study evaluates the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) for a floating offshore wind farm off the Gujarat coast using the latest data and parametric cost models. Wind speed data from ERA5 and bathymetry from the GEBCO dataset support the site assessment. A 5MW wind turbine mounted on a SPAR platform is analysed under coupled wind–wave conditions using OpenFAST. Based on this generated power under the influence of wind–wave–floater dynamics, the energy output from the farms having aligned and staggered layouts with 5MW wind turbines is estimated and LCOE is calculated using three different cost models, resulting in a range of 110–120 €/MWh cost per unit energy for 16.5GWh per turbine of output energy. The sensitivity analysis reveals that CAPEX and project lifetime is critical for LCOE calculations in the Indian context, particularly given the limited number of studies on FOWTs. The findings suggest that floating offshore wind is economically viable in the Indian context and the adopted methodology can inform future planning and investment decisions as the sector evolves.