Offshore wind and wave energy resource assessment in the Norwegian waters based on ERA5 reanalysis

In the present work, the offshore wind and wave energy resource in the Norwegian waters is assessed. The analysis is based on recently released ERA5 reanalysis wind and wave database, which covers a period of 41 years (1979-2019). For the assessment, several statistical features have been used, such as seasonal variability, annual and inter-annual variability, quantiles of the probability distribution, directional distribution, to mention some of them. In addition, the possibility of combined use of the two renewable energy sources has been examined by analyzing their joint correlation structure. On the basis of the analysis findings, suitable areas are identified as a suggestion for possible energy harvesting. This is a key initial step towards the recently set EU goal of reaching more than 60 GW of offshore wind energy capacity and more than 1 GW of ocean energy capacity in Europe by 2030.