Offshore wind power set to expand.

• Position: Brief article

As more countries seek to increase their renewable energy ratios, many are considering offshore wind as a potential solution to provide clean energy without affecting local landscapes and communities.

Offshore wind has so far taken a back seat to onshore wind farms during the current boom in wind energy development. Offshore turbines are more difficult to maintain, and they cost 8-12 U.S. cents per kilowatthour, compared to 5-8 cents for onshore wind.

But offshore wind farms offer several benefits over their land-based counterparts. Strong ocean winds allow an offshore turbine to generate substantially more power than an equivalent onshore turbine. Also, if an offshore farm is located near a coastal city, clean energy would be available without dedicating land to new transmission lines.

Denmark built the first offshore wind farm in 1991. Since then, slightly more than...