Wind and solar have the potential to reshape the world as we know it. They have the potential to generate 40 times more electrical energy than we currently consume. However, wind and solar currently make up only 4% of all current energy sources.
While there is ample land area for both wind and solar power plants, there is also ample area offshore of major metropolitan areas to power the world’s major cities.
The British vendor of electronics, RS Online, has made a simple estimate of how much surface area is required by offshore wind farms to supply the needs of major cities. Their infographic lists the world’s major cities and displays a grid that represents the area of the sea or lake that the wind turbines would occupy.
RS Online looked at the amount of space needed in relation to the size of the city itself and found that:
- Rome would be powered by turbines encompassing an area 40% of its size
- St Petersburg would need an area 157% its size
- New York City would require an area 481% larger than itself
- Seoul would need a space 620% its own mass
While those numbers may sound high, there’s more than enough space available offshore to house these structures as shown in the graphics representing each city.
Note: We are providing this information as a public service. We have not verified the calculations.
How Many Offshore Wind Turbines are needed to Power the World’s Major Cities?
