ABB, AWS Truepower, Duke Energy, NREL, University of Pittsburgh have created a provisional partnership to perform studies that identify sites for high offshore wind energy potential and grid interconnection along all U.S. coastal regions.
The DOE says it is providing funding for a team of leading energy organizations to perform a broad study that will assess the most promising sites for high offshore wind production along all of the U.S. coastal regions. The ABB-led team will investigate important technical and economic questions about the integration of offshore wind energy through a range of transmission technologies.
The chart graphs DOE estimates for the growth of wind power.
This DOE effort – the “National Offshore Wind Energy Grid Interconnection Study” – will determine the expected staging of offshore wind development in each coastal region, develop expected wind generation production profiles, assess the applicability of integration study methods to offshore wind production, assess a variety of offshore wind collection and delivery technologies, and consider regulatory issues that may influence the selection of technologies or the implementation of systems.
The study will also provide technical and economic viability data necessary to produce a roadmap to the DOE’s “20 Percent Wind Energy by 2030” wind goals for the U.S. This Offshore Wind initiative will help guide the national effort to achieve a 54 GW of deployed offshore wind generating capacity by 2030.
Electric power generated by wind resources has become an increasingly important part of the energy production portfolio of the U.S. Most current wind production, however, is land-based despite significant accessible wind resources offshore, as well as significant technological developments for offshore wind production in recent years.
The DOE Offshore Wind Initiative invests $43 million in 41 projects across 20 states over the next five years to speed technical innovations, lower costs, and shorten the timeline for deploying offshore wind energy systems. The projects will advance wind-turbine design tools and hardware, improve information about U.S. offshore wind resources, and accelerate deployment of offshore wind by reducing market barriers such as supply chain development, transmission, and infrastructure.
Team leadership for this project will be provided by ABB’s John Daniel along with Ken Pennock at AWS Truepower, Spencer Hanes at Duke Energy, Lynn Coles with NREL, and Gregory Reed at the University of Pittsburgh. Team duties and tasks have been divided this way. ABB will oversee the project, and its main technical contribution will be to assess the collection and delivery technologies, including collector-system alternatives, delivery-system alternatives, marine substation design and hardware and undersea cabling and installation technologies.
AWS Truepower will focus on the initial phases of the Offshore Wind Grid Integration study. The company shall include formulation of offshore wind development staging, offshore wind generation production profile simulation, and an analysis of wind generation ramp frequencies between the offshore and onshore wind projects.
Duke Energy Business Services will assist ABB by providing transmission consulting services and regulatory policy support to this national integration study. Duke Energy will collaborate with its research partners to stage national offshore wind modeling in a way that addresses potential use-conflicts with military, commercial and recreational fishing, environmental, and other important interests.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is a laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development.
University of Pittsburgh will focus on examining traditional and advanced electric power delivery options. To access the most effective integration of offshore wind into onshore networks, Pitt researchers will look at state-of-the-art power electronics-based transmission technologies, integrating ac and dc power converters, and undersea cable systems.
The project team is expected to provide its final report and recommendations to the Department of Energy in September 2013. Download the report from: http://www.20percentwind.org/20p.aspx?page=Report
ABB
www.abb.us
AWS Truepower
www.awstruepower.com
Duke Energy
www.duke-energy.com
University of Pittsburgh
www.pitt.edu
www.awstruepower.com
Filed Under: News, Offshore wind, Projects
