Brazil reviewing 55 offshore wind applications

There are currently 55 offshore wind projects totalling more than 133 GW undergoing licensing process to obtain environmental investigation authorisation in Brazil, according to the government’s latest update, which also shows several European developers on the list, including the three oil majors already reported to have plans in the country: TotalEnergies, Shell, and Equinor.

Nineteen companies have applied with the country’s Institute for the Environment and Natural Resources (IBAMA) for approval to undertake environmental impact assessment to support project development and, later on, construction.

Majority of developers have multiple projects in more than one state, with the state of Rio Grande do Sul currently leading in applications sought for investigations off its coast, having a total of 17 projects on the map as of 20 April.

According to data from IBAMA, Brazilian waters could see projects of up to 6 GW and host offshore wind turbines of up to 20 MW. There might also be floating wind farms planned as two floating wind developers have also joined the licence seeking crowd.

The latest update also shows the three European oil and gas companies that have been reported as planning to build offshore wind farms in the country account for more than 40 GW of the total capacity.

Some of the biggest projects planned in Brazil go well beyond the usual capacities as two developers have applied for authorisation to carry out environmental assessment for projects topping 5 GW.

Alpha Wind Morro Branco is developing a project with an installed capacity of 6 GW, comprising 400 wind turbines with a 15 MW output per unit.

The company, which plans to install the wind turbines offshore the state of Ceará, is a subsidiary of the Brazilian Veritas Group.

Even bigger development is planned off the coast of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where a company named Ventos do Atlântico is planning a 6.5 GW offshore wind development with 482 turbines of 13.5 MW output.

The same developer has applied for environmental investigation licences for four more projects: a 5 GW offshore wind development in Rio de Janeiro, a 2 GW project in Rio Grande do Norte, a 999 MW offshore wind farm in Piauí, and another project in Rio Grande do Sul that would have 700 MW of installed capacity.

According to information available online, Ventos do Atlântico is owned by Ocean Winds, a joint venture between ENGIE and EDP Renewables.

Among the European developers eyeing offshore wind in Brazil is also French company Qair, which is behind the EolMed floating wind project in France and the recently shortlisted new floating wind farm in a consortium with TotalEnergies and Green Investment Group (GIG).

Qair is also behind the 1 GW floating wind project in Scotland, together with DEME Concessions and Aspiravi International, which was selected in the ScotWind auction in January.

In Brazil, the company is requesting approval to perform an environmental assessment for a 1,216 MW project in Ceará, where it plans to install 128 turbines of a 9.5 MW output each.

From perspective of the floating wind industry, the country is also of interest to Spain-based developer BlueFloat Energy, which was also one of the winners of the ScotWind leasing round in Scotland and has several projects in development in Europe.

According to IBAMA’s data, the company submitted applications for seven projects, including three projects in the 3 GW range offshore Rio Grande do Sul and Rio de Janeiro.

In Rio Grande do Sul, BlueFloat has applied for investigation licences for two wind farms of 3,000 MW and 3,180 MW capacity, while the project in Rio de Janeiro has 2,960 MW.

The developer is planning another offshore wind farm in Rio de Janeiro with a capacity of 1.7 GW.

BlueFloat also has two projects in in Rio Grande do Norte, one planned to have a capacity of 1.7 GW and another 1,180 MW.

The company has also filed for a licence for a 1,240 MW project in Espírito Santo, one of the six states where Shell is also looking to build an offshore wind farm in the gigawatt-scale range.

As reported a few days ago by our sister site offshoreWIND.biz, Shell and Equinor, which submitted first applications to IBAMA in 2020, are not the only European oil majors looking to install wind turbines offshore Brazil as TotalEnergies joined the list in March.

Together, Shell, Equinor, and TotalEnergies have 40,450 MW of offshore wind capacity planned in the country across 15 projects.

Of this total, Shell leads with 17,080 MW planned to be installed offshore six states: Piauí, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, and Rio Grande do Sul.

In Piauí and Espírito Santo, Shell is looking to build a 2,520 MW offshore wind farm in each of the two states, while the four other projects would each have a capacity of 3 GW.

Equinor is following with 14,370 MW and six projects in four states: Piauí, Ceará, Rio de Janeiro, and Rio Grande do Sul.

The biggest offshore wind development Equinor is planning in Brazil is in the state of Rio de Janeiro, where the company has filed for environmental investigation approval for a project of a 3,840 MW capacity.

The remaining five projects are ranging from 2 GW to 2.5 GW.

TotalEnergies’ plans are concentrated on three states: Ceará, Rio de Janeiro, and Rio Grande do Sul, with a 3 GW project planned to be built in each state.

At the beginning of this year, the Government of Brazil issued a Decree which will enable the implementation of necessary offshore studies and the identification of areas suitable for the development of offshore wind projects.

Brazil’s Ministry of Mines and Energy will be in charge of carrying out the studies, selecting the offshore wind zones, as well as organising subsequent auctions.