Potentials of a hybrid offshore farm for the island of Fuerteventura

The island of Fuerteventura (Spain), on its way towards energy self-sufficiency, is investing in renewable sources to produce green energy. In this manner the island, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, would be able to decrease its carbon footprint. Considering these goals, the main objective of this work is to investigate the output energy from renewable energy sources, and in particular, wave and offshore wind by means of the installation of a hybrid offshore wave-wind farm off the western coast of the island, where the resource is substantial. The farm, consisting of offshore wind turbines and co-located wave energy converters (WECs), would realise the synergies between wave and offshore wind energy. As a second objective, the impact caused on the nearshore climate in terms of deficit of wave height is investigated by means of the implementation of the SWAN model. It is found that, on the one hand, the impact generated is not very noticeable, and on the other hand, the produced energy constitutes an excellent approach to satisfying the energy needs of the island.