Government of India notified National Offshore Wind Energy Policy-2015 on 6 October 2015 for the development of offshore wind power in the country. The policy provides framework for offshore wind power development up to a seaward distance of 200 nautical miles from the baseline, i.e. up to the country's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). As per policy, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) is the Nodal Ministry, and the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) is the Nodal Agency for the development of Offshore Wind Energy in India. Preliminary studies carried out by NIWE across the coastline of India indicate good potential both off the Southern tip of the country and the West coast for offshore wind farm development in India. The offshore wind potential was assessed by the FOWIND (Facilitating Offshore Wind in India) consortium with NIWE as a knowledge partner. Based on a multi-criteria approach involving assessment of various parameters such as wind resource, bathymetry etc., eight zones each off the coast of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu were identified as potential offshore wind energy zones.
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