Wind Power Seen Surging as Custom Barges Cut Cost
Offshore wind-power producers from Dong Energy A/S to RWE AG are building custom ships at record rates to reduce the cost of the technology which is three times as pricey as electricity from coal plants. As many as 20 vessels, some with movable legs which reach the seafloor, will come onto the market in the next few years, reducing chartering costs of as much as 200,000 euros ($261,000) a day, said Marc Seidel, an offshore engineer at Suzlon Energy Ltd., which supplies turbines to Germany’s RWE. A lack of specialized installation ships has forced companies to hire barges designed for oil exploration, holding up work at projects such as EON AG’s Robin Rigg wind farm off Scotland’s western coast.
North Sea Rigs Evacuated on Explosion Risk
Total SA’s Elgin platform leaked gas for a third day in the U.K. North Sea, and neighboring rigs were evacuated to guard against the risk of an explosion. The platform was evacuated and production halted after a “well control problem” caused a leak on March 25. Total has flown in outside experts to help stem the flow of fuel, which prompted Royal Dutch Shell Plc. to move staff from its neighboring Shearwater field. The Elgin and Franklin fields, which send oil and gas through the platform, supply about 15 percent of Forties crude, the biggest component of Dated Brent used to price more than half of the world’s oil. As well as gas, about 23 metric tons of condensate…
EON to Cut Cost of Offshore Wind Farms 40 Percent
EON AG, Germany’s largest utility, expects to cut costs for building offshore wind farms about 40 percent by 2015, as it embarks on a $9 billion renewable energy expansion plan. “Renewables are a mainstay of our corporate strategy, and wind power in particular is one of our growth businesses,” said Chief Executive Officer Johannes Teyssen at company headquarters in Dusseldorf. EON seeks to build wind farms off the U.K., Scandinavia and German coastlines, including the 1-billion euro Amrumbank West project in the North Sea, which Siemens AG, Europe’s largest engineering company, will supply with 80 of its wind turbines. “We intend to commission a new offshore wind farm every 18 months,” Teyssen said. (Bloomberg)
German Nuclear Power Extension Threatens Offshore Wind Funding
According to a September 6 report from Bloomberg, the German government’s plan to extend the phase-out of nuclear power risks hampering investment in offshore wind turbines. Utilities including E.ON AG and RWE AG may cut their investment in the industry to compensate for a tax of $3.9b a year they will be charged, said an analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The levy on nuclear-plant operators is meant to support renewable energy. (Source: Bloomberg)
