GE Vernova to test 15.5MW Haliade-X offshore wind turbine in Norway - Windpower Monthly
GE Vernova to test 15.5MW Haliade-X offshore wind turbine in Norway | Windpower Monthly
The Norwegian state's energy fund, Enova, is due to provide GE Vernova with NOK 331.9 million (€28.8 million) for the installation and testing of the Haliade-X 15.5MW-250 at an onshore site in the Gulen municipality north of Bergen on Norway’s west coast. It is unclear how much installation and testing in Gulen will cost in total.
The US turbine manufacturer is currently focusing on producing several key “workhorse” wind turbines, including the Haliade-X platform, which has a standard power rating of 15.5MW and 250-metre rotor diameter.
Its 15.5MW turbine is due to be installed in 2025 and to undergo a five-year testing period at a site in the Sløvågen industrial area of Gulen. The Wergeland Group operates industrial services, including offshore wind development in the Sløvågen area.
A smaller version of the Haliade-X offshore wind turbine was previously installed in the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
A GE Vernova spokesperson told Windpower Monthly: “We are pleased to receive the support for the development of a prototype for our Haliade-X 250m in Norway. We are continuing to work closely with the local community, the Wergeland Group and all stakeholders to carry out this important project.”
Norway is heavily reliant on oil and gas to meet its existing energy demand, but aims to allocate cites capable of supporting 30GW of offshore wind power by 2040 to speed its transition to clean sources of energy.
Much of this capacity will need to come from floating offshore wind projects because of the country’s deep coastal waters.
Astrid Lilliestråle, director of technology and market development at Enova, said funding the Haliade-X 15.5MW-250 prototype would help to accelerate the growth of floating offshore wind in Norway.
“If Norway is to meet its long-term climate commitments, industry and society must be electrified, and offshore wind plays an important role in that,” she said.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: wind
Decades of government support for the development of wind energy has resulted in lower costs and a rapidly growing share of electricity generated by wind turbines. Wind in 2019 accounted for 7.3 percent of electrical generation, surpassing for the first time hydropower at 7.0 percent.