Wind energy production constitutes over 2.5% of total worldwide electricity usage and is growing rapidly at more than 25% per annum. A key advantage of wind power is that it is a renewable source of power with close to zero emissions and limited impact on the environment.
Ramboll stands as a global company with more than 30 years of experience in the wind industry. Our portfolio includes the successful completion of projects in 21 countries in offshore wind and 60 countries onshore. In total, Ramboll relies on more than 300 staff dedicated to wind energy, enabling us to deliver services with a global perspective yet with a local expertise. With our multidisciplinary capabilities we offer a full range of services that cover the entire life cycle of a project, from planning and project development to design, procurement, implementation and follow-up on operation, maintenance, and finally to decommissioning.
Building on our more than four decades of offshore experience, Ramboll excels in making the most competitive projects. With our unmatched competences, in every project we work, we provide the smartest designs to reduce CAPEX and keep OPEX low, while minimising the uncertainty of energy yields.
Excellence is at the core of Ramboll’s values, and all our wind services comply with the strictest European and international standards and requirements. This ensures that our clients benefit from a service offering that has the highest quality standards at all times and in all aspects.
Innovation drives success, and with that in mind, Ramboll invests considerable resources in technical development, being at the forefront of research when it comes to technology designs and modelling tools.
Our expert services include the following:
Wind & site
Using state-of-the-art technology, over the course of 20 years, we have carried out more than 3,000 energy yield assessments globally, comprising a database with more than 25,000 wind turbines, both offshore and all kinds of onshore terrains. Our extensive wind portfolio ranges from the initial wind farm planning to the performance and power curve analysis in existing wind farms. Our competences extend to the design, monitoring, execution and analysis of mast and RSD measurement campaigns. With more than 100 implemented LiDAR projects and 10 own LiDAR devices, Ramboll is one of Europe’s largest owners and operators of Lidar systems, possessing deep expertise in the support and analysis of the most advanced remote sensing technology. We also perform high-quality MetOcean studies and numerical modelling, including hindcasting and forecasting, that form the fundamental basis for reliable offshore designs. Once in operation, we also support our clients in optimising the performance by SCADA data analysis and/or ground and nacelle based power curve/LIDAR measurements.
Project development
As a full-service provider, Ramboll can manage and implement entire wind energy projects on behalf of our clients and in close co-operation with them. From site identification, feasibility studies with full cash-flow modelling, to permitting and commissioning of turbines, we cover all phases of the development and permitting process of wind farming projects. We are ideally placed to offer all the technical capabilities required for offshore and onshore wind farms. Our technical competences are backed by our exceptional project management capabilities.
As the Owner’s Engineer during the construction and commissioning of the turbines, we ensure that the highest quality and safety standards are implemented. Through our expert services we offer individual and customized solutions for each project ensuring a professional and efficient project development, the lowest levelized cost of the energy produced and the most optimal performance of the wind farm, both offshore and onshore.
Environmental services
Independent and objective advice is vital in the development process of onshore and offshore wind. Using our extensive experience and expert knowledge, we identify environmental constraints and guide the design process to avoid or reduce environmental effects from the outset. We routinely provide advice and Environmental Monitoring at difference stages of the development cycle, from the feasibility and consenting phases, to construction and operation. Our services include the development of Environmental, Social, and Health and Safety (ESHS) management systems, as well as full Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) studies and other related expert reports.
Civil and structural design
Ramboll’s multidisciplinary profile and global presence, paired with our local expertise enable us to offer support in all civil work stages, from early planning through detail design and supervision. Our unique competences are reflected in our position as a leading company in civil engineering for onshore wind farms and as a global market leader in innovative foundation and structural designs for offshore wind farms. We combine our expertise in geotechnical, civil and structural engineering with our thorough understanding of the financials to provide our clients the most sustainable and cost-efficient solutions.
Our scope of expertise covers ports planning and design for use during the construction, operation and maintenance of offshore wind farms. We provide detailed designs of wind turbine foundations and offshore transformer platforms, including all auxiliary equipment and systems, as well the detailed design of the infrastructure necessary for onshore wind farms. To ensure that the structures are properly and safely designed and built, we carry out geotechnical and geophysical investigations and interpretations.
Electrical design
Our comprehensive range of capabilities includes specialist power system and grid connection studies and analysis as well as the design of electrical infrastructure and grid connections of offshore and onshore wind farms, design of LV, HV and MV grids, substations and grid connection installations. From desert to far-coast offshore, we have vast experience in harsh operation environments, which allows us to provide the smartest and most cost-effective designs to our clients and ensures that their wind projects operate with maximal reliability.
Due diligence
We provide independent advice based on detailed and reliable due diligence studies that include the assessment of all technical risks related with potential acquisitions of onshore and offshore wind energy projects. Our services cover the technical, environmental and commercial due diligences, comprising all project parameters, from energy yields, designs, technology, permits, environment and contracts to cost models (OPEX/CAPEX) and concepts for project implementation and operation. These also include Social Due Diligence and Independent Environmental and Social Consultant (IESC) lender audits.
Asset management
Having in mind the increasing pressure to lower the levelised cost of energy, we use our expertise to assist our clients in continuously maximising and improving asset performance throughout the entire asset lifecycle – and even “beyond”. Our expertise in structural engineering, SCADA data analysis and wind turbine and BOP inspections is the basis for our sophisticated Life Time Extension modelling. We also assist our clients with condition monitoring, including hindcasting and forecasting.
Visualisation
Ramboll is using Virtual Reality (VR) as a tool for design review/risk assessments and the visualisation of projects in Ramboll’s Wind division. As our projects and designs in offshore wind become increasingly more complex, new solutions are required to visualise our projects, both in the design phase and in-service. In this context, VR presents itself as a powerful technology that delivers more realistic and interactive visualisations of our engineering designs and models while simultaneously enhancing the communication process with project stakeholders.
Read more about visualisation of offshore wind projects