RWE Conducting Seabed Habitat Survey For 3 GW Offshore Wind Farm In UK
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
RWE is performing a benthic survey off the northeast coast of the UK, where the company plans to build its 3 GW Dogger Bank South (DBS) Offshore Wind Farm.
That sounds like another 3 GW will soon be on its way.
In How Long Does It Take To Build An Offshore Wind Farm?, I said that six years from planning permission to commissioning was typical, so as this wind farm is applying for planning permission in 2024, I would expect that a completion date of 2030 is possible.
The Most Important Words In The Budget
Jeremy Hunt said it once and I didn’t believe it! But then he said.
Carbon Capture, Use And Storage
Again!
Politicians usually forget to mention use and never put it before storage.
Use is something positive, which creates something humanity needs, whereas storage is like putting plastic bags or lengths of string in a drawer, in case you need them.
Well done Jeremy!
Call For Innovations In Offshore Wind – RWE Launches Global Innovation Competition 2023
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from RWE.
This is the sub-heading.
Solutions wanted in the domains of ecology, circularity and system integration – Deadline for submission is 17th of April 2023
This is the first paragraph.
RWE, one of the world leaders in offshore wind, has launched its second annual Innovation Competition. The company is looking for solutions in the domains of ecology, system integration and circularity in offshore wind. RWE is dedicated to exploring and supporting innovative solutions that can both accelerate the pace of deployment of offshore wind, as well as contribute to sustainable development of offshore wind farms worldwide.
As someone who explored the dynamics of towing out and erecting floating oil platforms in the 1970s, I don’t think my experience fits entering. But I’ll be thinking about something.
World’s First Offshore Vessel Charging System Completes Harbour Trials
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
MJR Power and Automation, together with Blackfish Engineering and Tidal Transit, have completed the harbour trials of the company’s platform-mounted automated offshore power and charging system.
Reading the article, this appears to be a very comprehensive system, that allows electric or hybrid wind farm servicing vessels to top up their batteries efficiently before returning to base.
Surely, it is better to do it this way by developing the charging network before bringing the battery and hybrid vessels into service.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm Officially Celebrates Its Operations And Maintenance Base Opening
The title of this post is the same as that of this news item on the Dogger Bank wind farm web site.
These bullet points introduce the item.
- 150 guests and employees gathered to celebrate the official opening.
- The state-of-the-art base will be the hub for operations and monitor 5% of UK electricity from its control room.
- Over 400 long-term jobs have been created locally to support Operations and Maintenance from South Tyneside for the 35-year life of the wind farm.
- The world-class facility will be operated in line with the UK Green Building Council’s (UKGBC) Net Zero Carbon Buildings Framework
This Google Map shows the location of the base.
The red arrow indicates the base, which appears to be convenient for the North Sea.
This second Google Map shows a close up if the site.
There is a nice long quayside, which in the future could be large enough to assemble floating turbines.
This third image is a Google Map 3D visualisation of the site from across the Tyne.
The news item says this about the ownership and operation of the Dogger Bank wind farm.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a joint venture between SSE Renewables (40%), Equinor (40%) and Vårgrønn (20%). SSE Renewables is lead operator for the development and construction of Dogger Bank Wind Farm. Equinor will be lead operator of the wind farm on completion for its expected operational life of around 35 years.
Initially, the Port of Tyne base will operate and maintain these wind farms.
- Dogger Bank A – 1235 MW
- Dogger Bank B – 1235 MW
- Dogger Bank C – 1218 MW
This gives a total of 3688 MW.
Note.
- SSE Renewables and Equinor are also developing the 1500 MW Dogger Bank D wind farm.
- This would bring the total up to 5188 MW.
- RWE are also developing the 3000 MW Dogger Bank South wind farm.
Leases were signed for both the Dogger Bank D and Dogger Bank South wind farms in January 2023.
I doubt all of these wind farms will be operated and maintained from the Port of Tyne base, due to the different ownership of Dogger Bank South.
But, I do hope that the facility can be expanded to handle Dogger Bank D.
GE Developing 18 MW Haliade-X Offshore Wind Turbine
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
GE could soon join the list of wind turbine manufacturers who have passed the current 15 MW “threshold” by producing and/or announcing more powerful models. According to information recently shared with investors, the US-headquartered company is likely to climb up the offshore wind turbine output ladder, currently led by Chinese OEMs, with an up to 18 MW Haliade-X turbine.
Note.
- GE’s current largest turbine is a 14.7 MW example.
- GE are supplying the 3.7 GW of turbines for the Dogger Bank wind farms.
It does look like GE intend to put the Chinese in their place.
Tiny Data Centre Used To Heat Public Swimming Pool
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
The heat generated by a washing-machine-sized data centre is being used to heat a Devon public swimming pool
These three paragraphs outline the story.
The computers inside the white box are surrounded by oil to capture the heat – enough to heat the pool to about 30C 60% of the time, saving Exmouth Leisure Centre thousands of pounds.
The data centre is provided to the council-run centre free of charge.
Start-up Deep Green charges clients to use its computing power for artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Note.
I find both of these interesting applications.
Welsh Government Greenlights Erebus Floating Offshore Wind Farm
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
The Welsh Government has granted consent for the country’s first floating offshore wind farm located 40 kilometres off the coast of Pembrokeshire
This is the first paragraph.
Project Erebus will feature seven next-generation 14 MW turbines on floating platforms, providing enough renewable energy to power 93,000 homes.
This near 100 MW project is the first in the Celtic Sea, where there 4 GW are to be installed in the next decade.
This is another paragraph.
Future phases of the development could realise an additional 20 GW of renewable energy, according to the Government.
Wales is not going to be short of energy!
UK Company Introduces Robotic Ecosystem For Offshore Wind Farm Inspections
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Marshall Futureworx, the venture building and advanced technologies arm of Marshall of Cambridge, has unveiled plans to provide offshore wind farm inspection services using a resident robotic ecosystem.
These two paragraphs outline the system.
Lilypad is an ecosystem of multiple autonomous BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) which utilise artificial intelligence and navigational sensors to provide dynamic and on-demand offshore inspection services, Marshall Futureworx said.
The UAVs are deployed from dedicated offshore charging stations and monitored by a single remote pilot stationed in an onshore command and control centre. Inspection data and reports are then transmitted back to the wind farm operators, which is said to enable faster, more frequent, reliable, and predictive maintenance scheduling and more effective utilisation of assets.
I can think of lots of uses for a system like this.
Drax Moves Forward With 600MW Scottish Hydro Scheme
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on reNEWS.BIZ.
This is the sub-heading.
Studio Pietrangeli has been appointed as owner’s engineer for the project
It looks like this 600 MW project, which will turn Drax’s 440 MW pumped storage hydroelectric power station into 1 GW power station, is finally on its way.
Reading about this project on the Internet, there are still some hurdles to be overcome before the power station is upgraded.
- Planning permission is needed.
- Both the UK and Scottish Governments need to give permission.
- Argyle and Bute Council are not totally behind the project.
My view as a Control Engineer, is that we need it to help balance the grid and allow wind power to play its full part.
