Floating offshore substations for offshore wind energy: A review of design challenges, structural integrity, and standardisation gaps

초록

Floating offshore wind in deep water and at long export distances requires offshore voltage step-up on a moving support, making the floating offshore substation (FOSS) a critical element of the floating-wind system. Fukushima FORWARD remains the only field-deployed FOSS, while commercial concepts now target gigawatt-class topsides, higher voltages, and tighter availability targets. This paper reviews the engineering basis for FOSS design from a naval-architecture perspective, emphasising the coupled behaviour that distinguishes a FOSS from a floating production unit or a floating wind turbine. The synthesis is organised around four arguments: that the FOSS must be designed as a coupled hull–topside–mooring–cable–equipment system; that qualification of dynamic high-voltage export cables is the binding technical gap on the route to commercial scale; that motion-driven HV equipment serviceability is a primary design driver, not a secondary operational concern; and that the standards basis is fragmented across DNV, ABS, IEC, CIGRE, floating-wind, vessel, and oil-and-gas guidance, with no single document yet covering FOSS as a unified subject. The main argument is that commercial FOSS development is now less a question of structural feasibility than one of system integration. © 2026 Elsevier Ltd. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.

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