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BOEM 'blown away' by offshore lease bidding frenzy
Records were shattered as operators bid a combined total of $405 million to secure three lease areas for offshore wind development off Massachusetts. Equinor, Vineyard Wind and Mayflower Wind Energy were the last names standing.
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Germany installation growth hits the buffers
Germany's onshore wind sector hit "negative growth" for the first time in July with a record low of just 22MW added, compared with 35MW of decommissioned, reported onshore wind agency FA Wind (Fachagentur Windenergie an Land), with only 4GW left in the permitted pipeline.
More French wind will mean cheaper electricity
Large-scale deployment of wind and solar capacity, combined with progressive closures of nuclear plants, is the best way to reduce the cost of electricity, according to a new report by the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (Ademe).
'Volatile market conditions' in Portugal need reforming
Electricity market reforms are key to achieving the Portuguese government's 2040 target of producing 90% of energy demand from renewables, according to a report commissioned by the Portuguese renewables lobby Apren.
Taiwan's first major offshore power deal signed
Macquare Capital and Swancor have signed a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Taiwanese state utility Taipower for the output of the joint venture's (JV's) 376MW Formosa 2 project.
SGRE and Aalborg Uni partner on new costs research
Suction bucket foundations, steel jackets, concrete transition pieces and cable connections are among the innovations to be put through their paces in a new EU-funded research programme to make offshore wind possible without subsidies.
Long-distance wake affects nearly all US sites
Almost 90% of all operational US wind farms in 2016 were close enough to other projects to either cause, or be affected by, wake effects.
Measurable power gains found in multi-rotor Vestas concept
Vestas is dismantling its multi-rotor concept after a two-and-a-half-year testing and validation campaign, in which the Danish manufacturer observed many technical benefits from the four-turbine prototype including a 1.5% power gain.
German wind output to increase in 2018
Renewables are expected to cover 38% of gross electricity consumption in Germany in 2018, according to preliminary figures, up two percentage points from last year, with grid upgrades also on the horizon.
Progress in French planning laws slow but sure
Legal challenges to onshore wind projects in France should move faster through the courts thanks to two measures enacted on 1 December, giving hope to 2GW of pipeline capacity.
Updated: Senvion confirm Rannou's start date
Former Alstom Wind senior vice president Yves Rannou will join Senvion as chief executive on 1 January 2019, the manufacturer has confirmed.
Taiwanese offshore policy criticised
Taiwan's ministry of economic affairs (MOEA) did not award contracts properly in its offshore wind auctions earlier this year, according to a government watchdog.
Vestas opens Russian blade factory
Vestas has opened its blade production facility in Ulyanovsk, according to the Russian Association of the Wind Industry (RAWI).
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Opinion
Growth slowing at crucial time
Traditionally there is a flurry of activity towards the end of the calendar year, particularly in the US, as developers race to meet various tax relief and support deadlines for new wind projects.
Wind atlases no substitute for on-ground experience
Atlases and the maps they contain have been used for hundreds of years as a means of navigating the unknown. Wind atlases serve the same purpose. They are designed to help stakeholders identify locations of high wind speeds and understand the overall potential for wind development in an area.
Analysis: UK keeps a tight rein on offshore expansion
UK: Draft plans for the UK's next contracts for difference (CfD) budget for offshore wind may show a reduced ambition but there are still positive signals.
FINANCE
In Depth
Success for clean energy advocates in US elections
Climbing a wind turbine was a key image of Michelle Lujan Grisham's successful campaign for election of governor in New Mexico in the US midterm elections
WindEconomics: Renewables lead the way in Germany
GERMANY: An authoritative report from the German Fraunhofer Institute confirms that wind and solar are now cheaper than all other electricity-generating technologies. In Germany, the most productive solar plants are slightly cheaper than the most productive wind farms.
Star-studded climate conference comes up short
UNITED STATES: The great and the good convened in San Francisco to discuss ways and means of combating climate change at a conference that was long on ambition and aspiration but short on practical answers.
Self-aligning floater with integrated tower follows shipbuilding principles
A German consortium has developed, tested and validated a self-aligning, lightweight, four-legged semi-submersible floating-platform concept that integrates the turbine tower. Eize de Vries highlights the technological innovations.
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