Wind Energy News

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.

ABB has won an order of more than $20 million from MHI Vestas Offshore Wind to supply reliable, energy-efficient and compact WindSTAR transformers, which are designed for installation in wind turbines.Borssele III and IV comprise the second phase of the Borssele wind farm. This phase constitutes a 731 megawatt (MW) wind project in the North Sea, 22 kilometers off the coast of The Netherlands and will be capable of providing enough clean energy to power more than 800,000 households."High…

Switzerland based Liebherr Group together with the Norwegian companies OHT, Ulstein Design & Solution BV, DNV-GL as well as Chinese shipyard CMHI are working to manufacture a unique vessel for applications in the wind energy sector, decommissioning, the installation of offshore platforms and for heavy-duty transports. CMHI, a well known manufacturer of offshore equipment and large vessels, is going to build the 216.3 meter long ship at its dockyard in Haimen on behalf of the heavy transport vessel operator, OHT.

EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG is continuing its strategy of capturing growth in new international markets in the renewable energy sector. Following its recent entry into Taiwan, EnBW has now expanded its activities to the United States of America by establishing a regional subsidiary, EnBW North America, and forming a joint venture with Trident Winds Inc. to develop an offshore wind project off the coast of in Central California. This represents the EnBW Groups first step toward tapping into the high potential of the American market.

ABB has won orders worth more than $150 million from Danish energy company Ørsted to supply technology to transmit wind energy from the 1,400 megawatt (MW) Hornsea Project Two, slated to be the world's largest offshore wind farm.The orders were booked in the second quarter of 2018 and are the first tranche of a global five year frame agreement for the supply of electrical and automation equipment for offshore and onshore wind power connection and integration to the grid, ABB said.ABB will supply its Static Var Compensation (SVC) Light technology with ABB Ability MACH control systems…

A new research vessel for the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has completed sea trials and is transiting to its home port in Virginia.The new vessel, the R/V Virginia, will support the institution’s fisheries research projects and greatly expand VIMS’ capability to perform general oceanographic research in the Chesapeake Bay as well as mid-Atlantic coastal waters. Interest in the new research vessel is already growing rapidly as next season is almost fully booked with science cruises.The 93-foot vessel was built by Meridien Maritime Reparation.

The greening of America’s energy signature will not come without the usual discussions, regulatory oversight – and opposition from a raft of special interests.Amidst an atmosphere of possible resurgence in the domestic offshore oil energy, maritime stakeholders are also reminded that there is more than one kind of energy available for development off the four collective coasts of the United States. That process is underway in the Great Lakes; it has already happened off of New England.

Surging growth in renewable energy generation around the world and a construction boom in South East Asia that is expected to run for the next 10 years bode well for the once ailing multipurpose shipping fleet.In the latest edition of Drewry’s Multipurpose Shipping Forecaster report we declare that we remain cautiously optimistic on the outlook for the sector. There are some caveats to this optimism as global general cargo demand is forecast to grow at a rate of just 2% per year to 2022…

In what can be construed as another positive sign for the turnaround of the offshore energy markets, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM) said it has set up a new business unit to focus on the oil and gas and offshore energy renewables markets.“This segment is focused on special operations and driven by different rules, so we decided to establish a dedicated expert team to specifically attend to the needs of the offshore market,” said Matthias Mueller, Managing Director of BSM…

U.K. based High Speed Transfers (HST) has finalized an order for a second Fast Crew Supplier (FCS) 2710 from Damen Shipyards Group. The contract was signed Wednesday during WindEnergy Hamburg.The vessel, to be named HST Sofia, will be HST’s second FCS 2710 since becoming the launching customer for the vessel type earlier this year.The FCS 2710 builds on the predecessor FCS 2610, but is upgraded to deliver more flexibility, more tank capacity, greater deck space, increased comfort and more accommodation.

The world's largest offshore wind farm will open on Thursday off the northwest coast of England when Danish energy group Orsted unveils the Walney Extension project.The wind farm has a capacity of 659 megawatts (MW), enough to power almost 600,000 homes, and overtakes the London Array off England's east coast which has a capacity of 630 MW.Walney Extension is made up of 87 turbines built by Siemens Gamesa and MHI Vestas, and covers 145 square kilometers (55 square miles), which is equivalent to around 20,000 football pitches.The 40 eight-megawatt MHI Vestas turbines being used stand 195 meters

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…

Swedish-based marine and industrial brake supplier Dellner Brakes said it has acquired German brake specialist JHS Jungblut in a move that aims to strengthen the company’s offering in the wind energy market, and also enable further global expansion, particularly in the Far East.The enlarged company will operate under the Dellner Brakes JHS GmbH brand. Kai Kölker has been appointed Vice President for Dellner Brakes JHS GmbH and will be running the company’s wind business division in Dorsten…

This month we caught up with Jeong-kie Lee, Chairman and CEO of the Korean Register and also the Chairman of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), for his insights on the dominant trends moving the maritime industry into the future.The maritime industry has been challenged, to say the least. Today, where do you see challenge? Where do you see opportunity?The maritime industry is in a state of extreme upheaval, with private and public organizations having to deal with a wide range of ever changing…

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, has successfully completed comprehensive due diligence of the Dutch Windpark Spui, for a group of lenders who are providing the debt financing for the project. The power generated at Windpark Spui, which will supply renewable electricity to more than 24,000 households, will be sold to Eneco Group, a Dutch sustainable energy company, under a 16-year power purchase agreement. Eurus Energy…

DNV GL, the world’s largest resource of independent energy experts and certification body, is today showcasing the final reports in a study which demonstrates the commercial and technical feasibility of the offshore wind market In India. Co-funded by the European Union (EU), GPCL and ReNew Power the Facilitating Offshore Wind in India (FOWIND) project will enable organisations to make future investments in the region. India has made strong commitments under the UN Paris Climate Agreement and announced ambitious renewable energy goals in 2015…

A U.S. House committee will kick off debate next week on three new bills aimed at boosting offshore wind energy leases in federal waters.The House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will hold a hearing on Tuesday on three bipartisan offshore wind proposals.One proposal would require the Interior Department to develop a leasing plan or schedule for federal offshore leases, a second would create a federal grant for educational or career programs for the offshore industry…

In support of the President's America-First Offshore Energy Strategy, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) today announced a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Construction and Operations Plan (COP) submitted by Vineyard Wind LLC that would allow it to construct and operate an 800-megawatt (MW) wind energy facility offshore Massachusetts. The publication of the NOI opens a 30-day public comment period. During this time, BOEM will conduct five public scoping meetings and accept comments.

LOC Group has today announced the appointment of Dr RV Ahilan to the position of joint CEO, alongside Jerome Rutler. Ahilan brings a strong strategic and technical understanding of LOC's key offshore markets to the leadership team. Over a 30-year career in maritime, oil and gas and renewable energy consulting, Ahilan served as Executive Vice President of the Renewables Advisory Division at DNV GL, President of GL Garrad Hassan and MD of GL Noble Denton in Americas and Europe before he joined LOC Group in February 2016.

As technologies mature and dramatic cost-cutting continues, the future is looking bright for offshore wind. Below are five trends to keep an eye on.Follow the LeaderOffshore wind’s established leader, Europe, will continue to show the way forward and build capacity. At the end of 2016, nearly 88 percent of the world’s offshore wind installations were located in European waters. In 2017, Europe saw a record 3,148 MW of net additional offshore wind capacity installed, with 560 new offshore wind turbines across 17 wind farms, according to WindEurope.

Independent wind asset operations management specialist OutSmart BV has selected Kongsberg Digital AS to provide an integrated management system on the innovative Kognifai digital platform and ecosystem. The sophisticated digital solution will be used to manage OutSmart’s extensive onshore and offshore wind turbine portfolio. OutSmart provides services to wind farm owners, fund managers, and wind project companies in Northwestern Europe to maximize the revenues of their wind assets.

Taiwan is becoming the next battleground for the world's top offshore wind developers as they seek a foothold in Asia for a technology that has been expanding fast in Europe.Taiwan announced results on Monday of its first major offshore wind farm auction that aims to add 3.8 gigawatts (GW) of capacity to its existing network of just 8 megawatts (MW).The island's offshore wind market is expected to expand to 5.5 GW by 2025, and the government aims to invest $23 billion on onshore and offshore wind projects by 2025…

Thanks to increasing levels of debt financing for climate-aligned projects, wind-generated power has become one of the fastest-growing green industries. Jessica Williams, an Infrastructure Analyst at S&P Global Ratings, considers the submarine technologies that are making this progress possible.Renewable energy is making an increasing contribution to the electrical grid. By the end of 2016, “green energy” sources accounted for almost a quarter of the world’s electricity supply, according to REN21.