Dong Energy and its partners LEGO Group and PKA were joined by turbine manufacturer MHI Vestas for the inauguration on Wednesday of the 258 MW offshore wind farm, which is the first to use MHI Vestas’ 8 megawatts (MW) turbine, according to Offshore Wind Journal.
Not only is the wind farm’s opening a feather in the cap for Britain, showing the world it is a leader in wind power technology, but it is an historic occasion because this is the first time that 8MW turbines have been used commercially anywhere in the world, reports The Guardian. So all eyes in the renewable energy sector are looking on.
To give you a grasp as to the power in the Vestas turbines, Dong Energy says that just one of the behemoth turbines produces more energy than the whole of Vindeby, the world’s first offshore wind farm constructed by DONG Energy 25 years ago in Denmark.
The chief executive of MHI Vestas, Jens Tommerup had this to say at the opening ceremony: “The inauguration of Burbo Bank Extension represents a noteworthy milestone in the history of MHI Vestas and our stakeholders. We are extremely proud to supply 32 of our 8MW turbines to Dong Energy.”
Burbo Bank Extension Windfarm
The Burbo Bank Extension Windfarm covers an area of approximately 40 square kilometers, (15.4 square miles) in water depths ranging between 3.5 meters (11.5 feet) and 17 meters (56 feet). A total of 32 wind turbines were installed.
The Vestas V164-8.0MW turbine is the biggest of its kind in the world, with a hub height of 105 meters (344 feet) and a tip height of 187 meters (613.5 feet). Its blades measure 80 meters (262-feet)-long, providing a swept area of 21,124 square meters (8,156 square miles), while its nacelle is 20 meters (66 feet)-long, 8 meters 26.2 feet)-wide and 8 meters high. So yes, the blades are longer than nine London buses end to end.
Besides the construction and installation of the turbines, a new offshore substation was built to connect a vast inter-array of cables for the output from the turbines, and from the offshore site, the output is transferred by cable to a newly built onshore substation at Bodelwyddan, southeast of the St Asaph Business Park.
How the wind farm is helping the economy
The wind energy sector is the only renewable energy source backed by the Conservatives in the UK. And as long as the technological innovations continue to drive costs down, wind energy will continue to be supported. But here’s another good thing that is happening in Britain – Jobs and a new industry have been created as a direct offshoot of the wind energy industry.
One good thing to come out of the Burbo Bank wind farm is that by building bigger and more powerful turbines, there is a cost saving over using multiple smaller turbines to create the same amount of power generation. Not only that, but Vestas now has an Isle of Wight factory where the turbine blades are built. The turbine blades were designed, tested and manufactured at the plant.
Additionally, skilled and trained workers are needed to maintain the turbines, meaning a new career focus has been created – Green energy. And a career in wind energy encompasses a broad field of jobs, from manufacturing to logistics, to quality assurance and research and development.
Dong Energy was formed in 2006 with the consolidation of six Danish energy companies: DONG, Elsam, Energi E2, Nesa, Københavns Energi, and Frederiksberg Forsyning. The company has created a portfolio of renewables, based on leading technologies in offshore wind, bioenergy, and energy solutions.
