Latest news
Top Story
Superclass offshore turbines pose new installation challenges
Offshore wind turbines are reaching dizzying new heights and capacities. Will the rest of the industry be able to keep up?
Latest news
Plans for full-scale floating wind-wave hybrid pilot
Danish engineering firm secures test centre berth to install 'world’s first multi-megawatt floating wind and wave pilot'
How the wind industry can reach 100% recyclable blades
Wind power firms need to work together and with other sectors to make turbine blades recyclable, according to industry experts
New German government sets ambitious offshore targets
Draft agreement between three coalition partners foresees fast expansion of offshore wind, with increased targets for 2030 and 2045
US South Fork wind farm set for 2023 start
Ørsted and Eversource receive key governmental approval, but await further permitting decision
Enel brings net zero target forward to 2040
Italian utility expects to have 154GW of renewables and battery storage capacity by 2030, including 32GW of new wind
'Do we want a green transition or not?', wind industry asks
Community engagement and faster permitting can help speed up wind power development in Europe, Electric City panellists believe
Nordex bags turbine order for 177MW wind farm in Peru
German turbine manufacturer's N155/5.X platform with flexible power rating chosen for undisclosed project
CIP secures $1.6bn financing for 298MW Zhong Neng
CIP and CSC soon expect to reach financial close on offshore wind farm planned for a site in the Taiwan Strait
Siemens Gamesa’s 5.X platform secures 455MW Finland order
Country’s largest project will install 69 SG 6.6-170 turbines, promising record-low levelised cost of energy
Norway promises strategy for offshore wind development
'Offshore wind is on top of our agenda', recently appointed minister tells delegates at WindEurope's Electric City
.png "Click here to compare Turbine Manufacturers")
.png "Click here to view pipeline capacity by Country")
Long reads
LM Wind Power targets 'zero-waste' blades by 2030
Local partnerships, optimised manufacturing processes and use of materials key to target, blade maker believes
Exclusive: How SGRE made its blades fully recyclable
Eize de Vries gets an exclusive insight into Siemens Gamesa’s recyclable blade technology. It’s all about the ‘secret resin-hardener recipe’
Rise in project costs will not erase wind power’s advantage
Increase in commodity prices is pushing up installation costs for onshore wind in the US, but wind is likely to remain competitive
Offshore wind sector targets rapid growth beyond Europe
With offshore wind now set to account for a fifth of all global wind energy by 2025, more countries are setting out bold new visions
Exclusive interview: GWEC chief Ben Backwell
Ben Backwell on what keeps him awake at night, why working with governments and communities is crucial, and hopes for COP26
Exclusive: SGRE pushes offshore turbine to 236 metres
Siemens Gamesa upgrades its SG 14-222 DD turbine to align rotor size with the latest 12-16MW competitor offerings
Political u-turn shackles Mexico's booming wind market
Opening up its energy market brought billions of investment and 5GW of new wind capacity, but new development has stalled
Political support spurs wind power growth in South Africa
Procurement programme gives developers long-term visibility and has made the country the MEA region's top market
Finland shows the world how to get onshore wind right
A smooth transition from feed-in tariffs, fast permitting and a supportive grid operator have helped wind thrive in the Nordic country
Exclusive: Inside SGRE’s 14MW prototype nacelle
Eize de Vries climbs into the giant nacelle of Siemens Gamesa’s latest offshore platform to see the result of a decade of rapid upscaling
Technology
New player to develop floating offshore wind technology
Fred Olsen 1848 established to develop range of technological solutions to make floating offshore wind easier and cheaper
Vestas boosts onshore wind platform to 7.2MW
Danish manufacturer improves powertrain and power conversion systems for higher turbine power rating
Shell to partner Simply Blue on 1.35GW Irish floating wind
A two-phase floating development of up to 1.35GW is planned, in the Atlantic Ocean off County Clare
UK blade recycling plant pilot secures £2 million funding
Government grant to provide bulk of funding for £2 million (€2.4 million) project to recover blades’ glass-fibre component
Vestas unveils new modularised nacelle concept
Turbine manufacturer believes its new modularised nacelles will help to ease transportation difficulties
Equinor eyes 3GW Korean floating offshore wind
Partnership with Korean company underpins large-scale development plans using dedicated 'wind semi' technology
Chinese blade supplier plans wind factory in Brazil
Engineering firm Sinoma in talks with Bahia state governor about its first blade factory outside its native China
Dongfang unveils new 13MW offshore wind turbine
Chinese OEM announces new offshore turbine with 211-metre rotor diameter at wind power conference in Beijing
Iberdrola and TotalEnergies eye Norwegian offshore wind
Consortium to bid for floating project at Utsira Nord and fixed-bottom wind at Sørlige Nordsjø II in Norwegian tender
UK government earmarks £160 million for floating wind
New funding to kickstart ports and boost manufacturing under plan to deliver 1GW floating by 2030
Business and finance
Vestas confronts aftermath of cyber security incident
Company’s IT systems gradually reopening after security incident caused shutdowns across multiple business units and locations
OX2 to build and sell 455MW onshore wind farm in Finland
Nordic developer to start construction of 69-turbine project and sell it to consortium of Finnish energy companies
Investors take control at troubled Brazilian developer
Angra Partners takes control at embattled developer Renova Energia, which had filed for bankruptcy protection in 2019
RWE targets 31GW renewables and storage capacity by 2030
German utility-developer plans €50 billion spending spree on renewables, gas and storage in the next decade
Nordex posts net loss amid volatile conditions
German manufacturer narrows losses in first nine months of the year as commodity prices and shipping costs bite
Enercon selects former Nordex boss as new CEO
Enercon hires former Nordex chief executive Jürgen Zeschky to replace outgoing CEO Momme Janssen
Vestas teams up with Maersk to combat transport difficulties
Turbine manufacturer seeks to ease transportation challenges with long-term agreement with global shipping giant
GE to spin off merged renewables and power unit
US conglomerate splits into three companies and plans to divest from healthcare and energy by early 2024
Turbine maker Nordex cuts profit expectations for 2021
Germany-based manufacturer expects cost pressures from raw materials and transportation to continue
Brazil’s Equatorial to buy wind developer Echoenergia
Deal will help expand Equatorial's renewable energy portfolio and add an experienced management team, the developer explained
Market and policy
WindEurope's Electric City opens with call for action
Renewables installations need to pick up pace or "net zero will take until 2104", opening session in Copenhagen is told
Brazil reaches 20GW installed wind power capacity
Energy regulator announces milestone, with more than 750 wind farms and 10,000 turbines in commercial operation
US wind pins hopes on 'build back better' bill approval
Climate and infrastructure legislation clears House of Representatives, awaits Senate green light for crucial tax credit provisions
Lithuanian auction proposals ‘could raise project prices’
Lithuanian parliament to vote on proposals made “too quickly” and with “little consultation”, industry bodies warn
Spain to exempt most wind farms from clawback tax
Wind industry welcomes introduction of exemptions from damaging clawback measures levied on zero-carbon electricity generation
COP26: Wind industry faces ‘mountain to climb’ challenge
Renewed impetus for climate ambition confirms huge role of wind power in clean energy transition, industry experts believe
Netherlands plans extra 10.7GW offshore wind by 2030
Government is consulting on plans to add an extra 10.7GW of offshore wind, raising total target to 22.2GW by 2030
How COP26 outcome could affect wind growth to 2050
Wind power is set to grow as the world moves from fossil fuels. How quickly will depend on global action to tackle the climate crisis
WindTech: How ships could run on wind once again
Green ammonia produced from wind-powered hydrogen could become a major “low-carbon” shipping fuel
US's $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill to boost grids and ports
The Invest in America Act is due to provide funding for the grid upgrades that will be needed as more renewable energy is deployed
Project development
Pan-European offshore wind power moves one step closer
Cooperation agreements between grid operators pave the way for meshed grid to transport large amounts of offshore wind
Investors 'keen' on Italian floating offshore wind projects
Ecological transition ministry confirms high level of interest from potential investors as it completes first round of talks
New 6GW green hydrogen project planned in Australia
Developer plans using wind and solar to produce green hydrogen for international export as ammonia
Siemens Gamesa to supply 100MW to RES in Canada
Manufacturer to supply 20 of its SG 5.0-145 turbines for 100MW wind farm in Alberta, western Canada
UK plans Celtic Sea lease sale for 4GW of floating wind
Auction regulator Crown Estate unveils details of plan to support both industrial-scale and smaller projects
Siemens Gamesa wind pilot delivers first green hydrogen
Manufacturer's Danish pilot project features an SWT 3.0-113 DD wind turbine and a 400kW electrolyser stack
Bolivia launches largest wind farm and plans expansion
Bolivia inaugurates El Dorado project, which features 15 of Vestas’s V163-3.45 turbines running in 3.6MW power-optimised mode
Cost pressures add $1.8bn to Virginia offshore wind project
Higher commodity prices and other factors lead Dominion Energy to increase estimated price tag for 2.6GW project by 20%
RWE, Iberdrola snatch projects from zero-subsidy winners
More than 700MW of offshore wind capacity changes hands as deadline on German legacy rights loomed
Aker, Statkraft, Ocean Winds team up for floating wind
Norwegian firms and EDP/Engie joint venture hope to develop a floating wind farm in the North Sea
Partner content
All ears for turbine blades 24/7
How a continuous monitoring solution from Ping is helping turbine owners and providers of predictive analytics minimise blade O&M costs
Ping
How the latest simulation technology can reduce costs and improve productivity
Sign up to this Windpower Monthly webinar to hear Hexagon and DNV discuss how a new strategic partnership is aiming to improve wind turbine development and certification – and how the latest technologies can help to reduce LOCE
Hexagon
Vestas focuses on unlocking new multibrand service opportunities
Windpower Monthly talks to Head of Multibrand Service at Vestas, David Brett, about the company's multibrand service business, both in terms of its global footprint and the range of platforms within its portfolio
Vestas
How smart SCADA tools are making serious cost savings
The more sophisticated the renewable energy asset, the more sophisticated system you need to support it. Get it right and you can save significant time, resource and money.