MingYang produces first 18MW offshore wind nacelle
MingYang produces first 18MW offshore wind nacelle | Windpower Monthly
The MySE 18.X-20MW has flexible power ratings of 18-20MW and uses a hybrid drive system for optimal performance.
MingYang said the turbine platform, which was officially unveiled at the company’s Shanwei manufacturing plant in China, supports rotor diameters of 260-292 metres.
The MySE 18.X-20MW is designed for medium and high-wind locations and is specifically adapted for areas prone to typhoons. MingYang said the platform is equipped with active technology to help it withstand typhoons up to category 17 and wind speeds of 56.1-61.2m/s.
Manufacturing of key components including the blades, gearboxes, generators, pitch systems, large casings and control systems will take place domestically in China, MingYang said.
The MySE 18.X-20MW rivals fellow Chinese OEMs 18MW turbines including CSSC Haizhuang’s H260-18MW and Dongfang’s two 18MW offshore turbines in terms of size and capacity, with all three unveiled this year and acknowledged as among the largest wind turbines worldwide currently in production.
MingYang already has plans to produce an even larger offshore wind turbine. The company announced in October its ambition to produce a 22MW capacity turbine with a rotor diameter of more than 310 metres.
Related Knowledge Center: Offshore wind energy
Over the next decade, U.S. offshore wind power is expected to grow from a single 30-megawatt wind farm off Rhode Island to more than 2,000 MW of capacity along the Atlantic Seaboard. There are contracts for wind power off the coasts of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Virginia.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has estimated the United States has over 4,000 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind potential, enough to power the country four times over.
The growth in part being spurred by state solicitations, including in New York, where then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) set a commitment of 9,000 MW of offshore wind by 2035, and in Connecticut, where in June 2021, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) signed legislation authorizing the construction of 2,000 MW of offshore wind by 2030.
The offshore development is also being driven by an investment tax credit set to end in December 2019 and is equal to 12 percent of expenditures. U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Tom Carper (D-Del.) have introduced a bill to extend the tax credit for up to eight years.
The Interior Department has held eight competitive lease sales that resulted in 15 offshore wind leases over 1.7 million acres that has the potential for 21 GW of capacity. In February 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management completed a bidding process that realized $4.37 billion for 488,000 acres across six lease areas in federal waters off New York and New Jersey.
Projects have also been proposed off the Southeast coast, off California and Hawaii, and for the Great Lakes.