Harnessing offshore wind energy in east Africa: the next big move to lighting up the continent

Abstract

This paper reports on a study to assess the potential for future offshore wind energy in the coastal countries of eastern Africa. It identifies the areas that could host offshore wind turbines with depths smaller than 50 m and average wind speeds greater than 8 m/s. The study revealed a capacity of 98 GW of untapped offshore wind power potential in eastern Africa, a supply that would be sufficient to meet almost 60% of today’s energy demand of the whole African continent. The study proposes a politics- and geography-based path to be followed for the offshore wind energy development that can assist with future energy policy and planning, which could have an impact in the African population.