The Armow Wind-Power Facility in Ontario held a Grand Opening Event hosted by Samsung Renewable Energy and Pattern Energy Group LP (Pattern Development). The 180-MW Armow Wind is expected to generate enough clean energy to power approximately 70,000 Ontario homes each year, based on average annual residential energy use in Ontario. “The Municipality welcomes the…
Turbine blades arrive at Block Island Wind Farm
Offshore construction activities are beginning to ramp up for the Block Island Wind Farm, with the arrival of the 240-foot long turbine blades at Deepwater Wind and GE’s assembly facility at ProvPort. This morning, local stevedores began offloading the 15 blades at the Providence port facility. The blades and the tower sections already assembled there,…
Norvento turns on 10 turbines in 2016
Medium-scale wind turbine manufacturer Norvento has announced the successful completion of 10 new turbine installations throughout the UK in the first half of 2016. A healthy order pipeline for the nED100 100-kW turbines has seen a further two sites enter construction in the same period, with another seven fully consented turbine sites across Scotland and Wales…
How tall are wind turbines? Nordex installs the world’s tallest
Nordex has installed the world’s tallest wind turbine to date in Hausbay, which is in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. With a hub height of 164 meters (m) and a rotor length of 65.5 m, the N131/3300 wind-power system reaches a total height of just under 230 m. Located roughly 100 kilometers west of Frankfurt/Main,…
Pledge of 50% zero-carbon electricity by 2025 possible by growing more low-cost, reliable wind energy
Within the next 10 years the U.S., Canada, and Mexico will collectively obtain half of their electricity from zero-carbon sources of electricity, including wind power. That’s according to a joint pledge to be announced by President Obama, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto during the North American Leaders’ Summit in Ottawa,…
Milbank advises BlackRock in acquiring 50% of Texas wind farm
In its latest high-profile renewable power transaction, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP advised a fund managed by BlackRock in the acquisition from GE Energy Financial Services of a 50% interest in the Grandview wind project, located in the northern Texas Panhandle. The 211-MW facility, formally known as Grandview I Wind, has been operating since…
What would get you into an EV: Cost, incentive, or wind power?
If you aren’t yet behind the wheel of a hybrid or electric vehicle, chances are you will be over the next 10 to 15 years. At least that’s what some experts are predicting. In the next decade or so, reports indicate that electric vehicle (EV) sales will continue to grow in North America (which has led…
Planning for crises on the balance-of-plant
By Bruce Hammett, President WECS Electric Throughout the life of every wind farm, many challenges arise that will need attention to keep its turbines generating power. What begins with choices concerning turbine size and proper installation leads to decision on O&M and repairs. Typically, the more proactive and organized a site owner, the better. However,…
Ecosse Subsea Systems lands first Danish offshore wind project
Ecosse Subsea Systems (ESS) has secured its first subsea trenching contract in the Danish wind-farm sector. Leading European offshore service specialist, JD-Contractor A/S, has subcontracted ESS to perform pre-cut trenching works on the Kriegers Flak Offshore Wind Farm project in the Baltic Sea. Due to come online in 2022, Kriegers Flak will be Denmark’s largest offshore…
Nordex to repower German wind farm
Nordex will be replacing 16 legacy N60/1300 wind turbines with nine modern N117/3000 ones for PNE Wind AG by the end of 2016. Located near Cuxhaven in Germany, the Altenbruch I wind farm will be undergoing what in Germany is seen as a business model offering considerable potential for the future: repowering. In 2015, repowering…
Greenbacker Renewable provides turbine supply loan to Montana wind project
Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company LLC announced that it provided a turbine supply loan through a wholly owned subsidiary in the amount of $25.9 million to Greenfield Wind Manager, LLC. The loan is to help support construction of a 25-MW wind-generation facility located in Teton County, Montana. This project was developed by Foundation Windpower (FWP), in…
DONG Energy to build German offshore wind farm Borkum Riffgrund 2
DONG Energy has decided to build the German offshore wind farm Borkum Riffgrund 2, which is expected to be fully commissioned in the first half of 2019. With this decision, DONG Energy will reach 6.7 GW of installed offshore wind capacity, exceeding the 2020 target of 6.5 GW installed capacity. Borkum Riffgrund 2 will have a…
Fire prevention and protection for wind turbines offshore and on
By Hilmar Maas, Fire Safety Solutions Expert Siemens Building Technologies Division It is a rare occurrence but one that turbine owners aren’t willing to risk at a wind farm: a fire. The remote location of most wind projects and the sheer height of most turbines mean fire-fighting efforts if needed are too little too late. At…
U.S. expected to deploy 77.3 GW of distributed renewables between 2016 and 2025
A new report from Navigant Research examines the U.S. market for distributed renewables, with forecasts by state for solar PV, distributed wind, and biogas, through 2025. Distributed renewables technologies have unique characteristics that can act as generation and/or load control on the grid, yet they each represent a dynamic resource that is challenging the industry’s…
Canada’s largest annual wind energy conference announces program topics
The program has been announced for Canada’s largest annual Wind Energy Conference and Exhibition, taking place November 1 to 3, 2016 in Calgary, Alberta. Hosted by the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) and Hannover Fairs, the conference will highlight wind energy commitments, opportunities, and innovations across all regions of Canada. Additionally, this year’s event will focus…
Vestas’ challenges scaling rules with a multi-rotor demonstrator
The concept of a wind turbine with multi-rotor arrays is nothing new. Back in 2009, a company named Greenward Technology designed what it called the “Wind Turbine Quad Array,” which mounts four smaller turbines on arms to capture as much energy as a conventional unit with a 100-m diameter rotor. It seems the model never made…
Ask a wind tech: Krista Zappone
As part of their everyday job, wind technicians often risk their lives climbing turbines to maintain electrical and mechanical equipment. The wind industry owes much of its success to these talented men and women who keep turbines running and wind farms safely online. In this new series, we interview wind technicians to learn about what…
GE completes domestic compliance for wind and solar inverters in Brazil
The renewable energy sector in Brazil has high expectations for growth in the coming years. By 2024, solar power will account for 4% of Brazil’s energy matrix, and wind power will be the second-largest energy source by 2020, accounting for 12% of production. Following this trend, GE’s Power Conversion business has just completed domestic content…
Ergodyne expands Skullerz bump cap series with new XL size
Ergodyne announced the addition of a new XL-sized bump cap to its Skullerz Head Protection line. Now, workers of all head sizes can be protected from cranial bumps and bruises offered by the patented, state-of-the-art shell. While major head injuries can be catastrophic, even minor bumps, cuts, scrapes, and bruises can necessitate medical attention and become a lost-time…
Siemens presents cost out strategy for offshore wind by 2025
In early June, 2016, eleven members of the wind industry association Wind Europe issued a joined declaration containing the target of making offshore wind energy more cost competitive with conventional power generation within the coming years. At the Global Offshore Wind 2016 conference and exhibition in Manchester, England, Siemens as one of the first companies…