In a follow-up to our previous story (Ostend offshore wind farm) about the world’s largest offshore wind turbine near to the port of Ostend, in Belgium, the French engineering giant Alstom yesterday announced it has successfully completed the installation of the turbine.
The company reported that the installation of its 6-MW Haliade 150 turbine made it the largest wind turbine to ever be erected offshore. The giant turbine has huge pillars that have been sunk to a depth of over 60 metres, a 61-metre tall jacket, a 78-metre tower, a nacelle that stands 100 metres above sea level, and blades that are over 73 metres long. The entire structure is said to weigh around 1,500 tonnes.
Alstom are one of a number of engineering firms working on the next generation of large-scale offshore wind farms that will be capable of delivering at least 6MW of capacity. Alstrom said that the size of the turbine, coupled with an innovative new direct drive design that removes the need for a gearbox means the yield from the turbine is 15 percent better than existing turbines. This single installation will provide enough power for around 5,000 households.
Alstom said the design had already been successfully tested onshore and the new installation would-
“help in confirming how the machine behaves within the offshore environment for which it was specifically designed and developed”.
The company is investing heavily in France: It is building two new factories in Saint-Nazaire. They should be completed by mid-2014 and will produce the nacelles and generators for the turbine and then commission two new factories in Cherbourg to produce the blades and towers.
The Alstrom senior vice president Alfonso Faubel said:
“This project with Belwind asserts our technological leadership and our innovative abilities.” “The installation of our turbine is simple, robust and efficient thus contributing to boosting the competitiveness of offshore wind energy.”
Looking at the larger global wind industry, the development of next-generation offshore turbines is regarded as critical to the future of the industry. As suitable sites for onshore wind farms become less common and opposition to onshore wind farms builds in some countries, onshore seems the way to go. However offshore wind farms are much more expensive than onshore farms. It is hoped that as larger and more efficient turbines are built it will bring down the overall cost of offshore wind energy, and make it much more viable.
