New developments in heavy plates for offshore structures

Wind energy is one of the most important pillars in the urgently needed transformation to a more renewable and sustainable world. Electricity demands as well as hydrogen demands are growing and therefore more and more wind turbines will be installed on‐ as well as offshore. To the success of wind energy steel is indispensable and especially heavy plates play a crucial role in the production and installation of offshore wind farms, e.g. for the towers, the foundations of bottom‐fixed turbines or for the strongly growing demand of floating offshore wind turbines. New developments in heavy plate production can therefore help fulfilling the demands for new and larger turbines as well as to bring overall construction cost down by improving the fabrication of these structures. These developments can be related to plate dimensions, tougher materials and steel grades with higher strength or the weldability of the steel in use. This paper will include some of these developments for offshore wind turbines as well as offshore wind business in general and will give an overview on their benefits.