Offshore wind generation represents a key element for development of renewable energy, thanks to higher availability of energy source and lower presence of constraints. However, the feasibility of offshore wind farms has to be carefully evaluated, due to remarkable economical efforts required. In this paper, economic issues concerning costs in pre-investment and investment stages for offshore wind farms exploiting alternating-current transmission system are analysed. Single cost centres are detailed, taking into account technical features and current equipment exploitation. The aim is to formulate a general model to evaluate the total investment depending on wind farm layout. The model is employed to determine the most suitable connection solution for a 150-MW test wind farm, accounting for different connection schemes and the presence of an offshore or onshore substation. Further tests are run to evaluate cost variation for larger wind farms with different nominal voltage levels. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
