Renewables Certification News

DNV secured partners to launch a new project to enhance technology development and prepare for scale/industrialization of concrete substructures for floating offshore wind.The new Joint Industry Project (JIP) called Concrete FLOW will optimize requirements for concrete floaters (floating or semisubmersible structures, generally moored to the seabed, used as foundations upon which equipment can be mounted), specifically tailored for floating offshore wind farms.At the kick-off…

Energy expert and assurance provider DNV has provided Swedish floating wind tech firm Hexicon with a Statement of Feasibility for its TwinWay demonstrator which will be installed and operated at Metacenter, off the coast of Norway. With achieving this first step in the certification process, DNV considers the TwinWay concept feasible for further development towards a full-scale demonstrator.The intention of the TwinWay project is to show proof of concept for Hexicon´s floating wind foundation TwinWind.

Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Goldwind is the world’s first OEM to receive DNV GL’s Component Certification for its LiDAR Assisted Control system.The certificate is issued according to DNV GL’s own Type and Component Certification Service Specification in conjunction with the Recommended Practice for new Technology Qualification.LiDAR, which stands for “Light Detection And Ranging”, is a technique where a laser source is used to sense the incoming wind field in front of a wind turbine rotor. Its application to wind turbine control systems facilitates the reduction of loads on certain components such as the tower and blades, improves…

DNV GL, the global quality assurance and risk management company,  has awarded Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) with type certification for the manufacturer's new 8MW offshore wind turbine.The certificate for the SG 8.0-167 DD machine confirms full compliance of the turbine design to the international wind turbine standard IECRE OD-501 and allows for immediate market implementation.The turbine will be installed in offshore wind parks worldwide including the 1,400 MW Hornsea 2 project in the UK and the 900 MW Greater Changhua 1 & 2a project in Taiwan.Compared to its predecessor, the SG 8.0-167 DD is equipped with an 81-meter-long rotor blade that allows for a wider range and optimal usage of the wind site conditions.

DNV GL has signed a four-year framework agreement with TenneT to provide project certification for new High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC)  substations linked to offshore wind farms in the German North Sea.Agreement includes certification of TenneT’s DolWin5 converter platform with cost-saving offshore grid connection concept. TenneT awarded DNV GL the contract following an independent EU tendering process.Under this framework agreement, DNV GL is expected to carry out project certification for upcoming TenneT’s HVDC platforms, representing a cost-saving grid connection concept which will be applied for connecting offshore wind farms…

With the U.S. offshore wind industry poised for rapid growth, DNV GL has established a Renewables Certification office in Medford, Mass., to meet the growing demands for certification services. While the U.S. is still a generation behind Europe in the exploitation of offshore wind energy resources, it could catch up quickly, as, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), there is the potential to install 22,000 MW of offshore wind projects in the U.S. by 2030. Much of this activity is taking place in the Northeast…

The international accredited registrar and classification society DNV GL has become the world’s first certification body approved to issue IECRE - International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) System for Certification to Standards relating to Equipment for use in Renewable Energy applications - certificates for project certification.The Norway-headquartered organization now able to conduct conformity assessments as official Renewables Energy Certification Body (RECB) relating to project certification, project design certification and site suitability evaluation."DNV GL has been unanimously accepted as the first Renewables Energy Certification Body (RECB) for project certification under the international certification scheme IECRE OD-502.

The international accredited registrar and classification society DNV GL calls on industry stakeholders to jointly develop acceptance criteria for LIDAR-measured Turbulence Intensity (TI).The world’s largest resource of independent energy experts said in a press note that it is "calling on wind energy stakeholders to join a new Joint Industry Project (JIP) to explore the potential of using light detection and ranging (LIDAR) to measure wind speed TI for various applications in the wind industry."According to the Norway-headquartered organization, measuring meteorological conditions such as wind speed and TI is essential for assessing and verifying the feasibility of new wind energy projects.

The energy advisory and certification body DNV GL has awarded Iberdrola Renovables Offshore Deutschland GmbH the project certificate for its Wikinger offshore wind farm.The 350 megawatt offshore wind farm project located in the German Baltic sea is fully certified for safe and reliable power generation.The certification was carried out according to the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH – Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie) and covers all stages of the design assessment and implementation phase of the wind turbines, offshore substation including their support structures and the array power cables.The wind farm is located in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Baltic sea…

Norwegian testing and advisory company DNV GL said it awarded the Arkona Offshore Wind Farm with the project certificate.The certification was carried out according to the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH – Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie) standard BSH7005 and covers all stages of the project development from design planning over construction to commissioning.The project certificate confirms all relevant safety features of the wind farm and validates the technical and quality compliance with the BSH standard requirements, to ensure a safe and reliable power supply.Located in the Baltic sea, the Arkona project is 35 kilometres northeast of the German island of Rügen.

DNV GL calls on industry stakeholders to join a new Joint Industry Project (JIP) to develop Recommended Practice on wind turbine design methodologies for cyclones and earthquakes.The world’s largest independent energy advisory and certification body said in a press release that the ACE (Alleviating Cyclone and Earthquake Challenges for Wind farms) Joint Industry Project is aiming to gather experiences from cross-industry players to align wind turbine design methodologies for those extreme weather conditions.Seismic and cyclone impacts on wind turbines is of critical importance in emerging offshore markets such as the Asian Pacific region like Taiwan…

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has been contracted by Transmission System Operator TenneT to deliver the complete project certification for two offshore substations (OSS) for the Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind farms in the Dutch North Sea.The reliability of renewable sources is increasingly important as the world continues to rapidly electrify while also switching to greener forms of generation. According to DNV GL’s Energy Transition Outlook Report electricity’s share of the total energy demand is expected to more than double to 45% by 2050 with renewables accounting for…

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has published the revised standard for design of floating wind turbine structures DNV GL-ST-0119, and a new guideline for the certification of floating wind turbines, DNVGL-SE-0422.Together, the two documents define design and certification requirements for floating offshore wind turbine concepts, prototypes and projects. The guidelines provide the most comprehensive technical reference suite for this emerging technology, enabling the safe and reliable realisation of floating wind projects.The documents cover the complete requirements for the integrated system and can be applied for design and certification of floating wind farms…

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has signed a comprehensive framework agreement with leading Chinese wind turbine blade manufacturer Zhuzhou Times New Material Technology (TMT).The deal covers a range of certification and design assessment services to ensure the quality of TMT’s new rotor blade products, and also gives the manufacturer access to the latest innovations through DNV GL’s Joint Industry Projects (JIPs).The growth of affordable wind power requires the development of larger and more efficient turbine rotor blades. Blade manufacturers are continually working to deliver these innovative new rotors to reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy…

Acciona Energia, the biggest global operator exclusively in renewable energies,  received the first ever prototype certificate for a grid-scale energy storage solution by DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body. The handover of the certificate took place at the American Wind Energy Association’s 2018 Windpower Conference in Chicago. To explore the possibilities of grid-scale storage, Acciona Energia started up a hybrid plant for storing electricity in batteries as part of its grid-connected wind farm at Barasoain in Navarra, northern Spain. The plant in Barásoain is equipped with a storage…

DNV GL has awarded Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy with the Type Certificate for its eight megawatt (8 MW) offshore wind turbine SWT-8.0-154. Fully compliant to the international wind turbine standard IEC-61400-22, the turbine is now ready for immediate market implementation. New technologies like large offshore wind turbines with an output rate of 8 MW are vital to support the growing wind energy industry in reducing the levelised cost of energy. Siemens Gamesa’s optimised turbine has a rated power increase of 14% compared to the previously certified turbine variant. Increasing rated capacity offers one of the biggest potential for cost reduction in offshore wind, through corresponding reduction in MW balance of plant and operational costs as well as significantly higher capacity factors.

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has signed an agreement with leading Taiwanese stakeholders to collaborate on offshore wind testing and certification to drive the expansion and facilitate the development of offshore wind in Taiwan. The regulations for certification will be headed by the Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection since it has been designated by the highest authority in Taiwan. Taiwan is one of the rising offshore wind markets in the world. With its long-term visibility in terms of policy, financial support and development, Taiwan is Asia’s second biggest offshore wind market after China.

DNV GL invites industry partners to start a Joint Industry Project (JIP) for improving the collection and assessment of site conditions data for offshore wind farms. Aiming to increase the efficiency of collecting site conditions, the new JIP will work with stakeholders from across the wind industry. The knowledge generated from the JIP is planned to be ultimately incorporated in a DNV GL recommended practice. The design of an offshore wind farm is dependent on the quality of the calculated site conditions used to derive the design parameters. To achieve an optimal quality in data collection and assessment, extensive and costly investigations are needed at a very early stage of the development, long before final investment decision is made.

DNV GL has assessed the market’s new offshore turbine in development and awarded Siemens Wind Power with the Prototype Certificate for its 8 megawatt (MW) offshore wind turbine SWT-8.0-154. The prototype certification confirms all relevant safety features on the turbine according to the Danish Executive Order BEK 73:2013 and IEC 61400-22, allowing installation of the prototype to demonstrate its performance. By erecting the turbine at the test centre for wind turbines in Østerild, Denmark, Siemens is able to perform the measurement campaign for the next phase of the type certification process which is crucial to bring the turbine to the market. “We are proud to have received the prototype certificate at this early stage, allowing us to install our SWT-8.0-154 prototype according to plan.

DNV GL has issued full type certificates for Envision’s 2.3 MW turbine EN115-2.3. and 3.0 MW turbine EN120-3.0. This is an important milestone for the smart energy solution provider to compete in international wind energy markets. These certificates confirm that both turbines comply with all the requirements of the global IEC 61400-22 standard ensuring safety and reliability of wind turbines and wind farms. Due to large investments in the wind industry, financing banks, insurance companies and authorities require reliability and safety assessments of wind energy projects. The full type certificates are a key step for Envision to give their customers the confidence that they have high quality turbines ready for international markets.

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has awarded Vattenfall with a final statement of compliance for its offshore accommodation platform. This is the first offshore platform in the North Sea to host up to 50 operation and maintenance staff members working at the nearby DanTysk offshore wind farm. As the offshore wind farm is 90km away from the nearest harbour, project developer Vattenfall designed the unique offshore structure to enable staff to live independently close to the wind farm without any outside support for up to three weeks. The offshore wind accommodation platform sets unique challenges to the certification process.

Together with global partners, DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and renewables certification body, has launched a Joint Industry Project (JIP) to develop a new Best Practice for the validation of turbulence models. The JIP “Validation of Turbulence Models” aims to create a better understanding of turbulence modelling to reduce uncertainty in the design of wind farms. By jointly developing guidelines in the form of a Best Practice document the project will improve accuracy on site-specific load assessments, leading to a reduction in the cost of wind energy. To design wind turbines and wind farms, the industry currently relies on wind turbulence models that were developed decades ago when wind turbines were smaller than modern turbine types.

Contract covers inspections from manufacturing, transport, installation and commissioning of wind farm. E.ON has awarded the project certification contract for the new Arkona offshore wind farm to DNV GL. The project covers the inspection phases, from manufacturing, transport, installation and commissioning to take the wind farm into operation. The Arkona offshore wind farm is a 385 MW offshore wind farm which is currently being developed by E.ON. The wind farm will be located 35 km northeast of Rügen Island, in the Baltic Sea, Germany. The energy company Statoil has a 50 percent stake and is involved in the project from the start. E.ON is responsible for building and operating the wind farm.