Tag: Wind

California, Again Facing Summer Supply Vulnerabilities, Eyes 20-GW Offshore Wind Goal

May 12, 2022
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The California Energy Commission (CEC) is mulling a preliminary planning goal for 3 GW of offshore wind by 2030 and potentially expanding it to 10 GW to 15 GW by 2045. If finalized, California’s offshore wind goals would be the most ambitious in the U.S., surpassing even New York’s, which call for 9 GW by 2035.

In a draft report sent to the state’s governor on May 9, the CEC suggested California has an offshore technical potential in federal waters off the California coast of  21.8 GW, based on wind speed, ocean depth, bottom score, and distance to connecting infrastructure. Preliminary planning goals, however, focus mainly on floating offshore wind deployments, given that the deep waters of the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf off California’s coast have “steep drop-offs and will require offshore wind turbines installed on floating platforms to be anchored to the seabed.”

The CEC’s draft responds to Assembly Bill 525 (AB 525), a law that took effect this January and requires the CEC to develop a “strategic plan” for offshore wind energy developments off the California coast in federal waters.…

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Burns & McDonnell Awarded Contract for Ocean Wind 1 Offshore Project

April 26, 2022
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The first three major construction contracts have been awarded for the 1,100-MW Ocean Wind 1 offshore project that will provide electricity to New Jersey.

Ocean Wind 1 is a joint venture between Ørsted and Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG), which provides electricity for much of New Jersey. Those groups on April 25 announced Burns & McDonnell Engineering Co. and JINGOLI Power have been contracted to install two high-voltage substations, along with almost nine miles of underground cable, that will connect the offshore wind farm to the onshore electric grid at two landfall points near Atlantic City.

Engineering for the project began earlier this year, and construction is expected to start in September of next year. The Ocean Wind 1 site is about 15 miles off the coast of southern New Jersey. It is part of the state’s plan to install at least 7,500 MW of offshore wind generation capacity by 2035.

Ocean Wind 1 will utilize more than 90 of GE’s Haliade X 12-MW wind turbines.…

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Vestas Cutting Jobs Despite Leading Wind Installations

March 22, 2022
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Vestas occupies the top spot when it comes to market share among global wind turbine manufacturers, according to a new analysis, but the Danish business is not immune to the challenges facing several of the leading companies in the wind power sector.

Supply chain issues are buffeting wind energy, as they have other industries. Though Vestas Wind Systems A/S continues as the leading manufacturer of wind turbines, according to a GlobalData report released March 22, the company also this month announced it plans to cut at least 275 jobs, including 75 in Denmark, in what it termed a “highly volatile environment” for the sector. A Vestas spokesperson in a statement said the group wants to balance “2022 priorities and long-term growth” for the company, with the job cuts part of “adjusting our activities and organizational setup.” 

It’s the latest round of job cuts for the wind energy giant. A POWER analysis of Vestas’ announcements found the company has jettisoned nearly 2,000 jobs from its manufacturing facilities in Denmark, the UK, Germany, and Colorado since September 2019.…

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Largest U.S. Wind Project Online in New Mexico

February 26, 2022
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A wind farm comprised of four projects in central New Mexico, serving areas of that state and California, is now online and takes the title of the largest wind power installation in the U.S.

Pattern Energy Group, among the world’s largest privately-owned developers and operators of wind, solar, transmission, and energy storage projects, on Feb. 24 announced the opening of Western Spirit Wind, a project in Guadalupe, Lincoln, and Torrance counties in New Mexico with more than 1,050 MW of generation capacity.

The project features 377 GE wind turbines ranging from 2.3 to 2.8 MW in size. Pattern officials on Thursday said the turbines “utilize various tower heights to optimize the wind capture at each facility.” Blattner Energy, a Minnesota-based contractor that specializes in renewable energy project, was the engineering, procurement, and construction lead for the four wind farms.

“This project is doing it all: creating good-paying jobs, providing clean power to New Mexico and beyond, and cutting emissions from the energy sector,” said New Mexico Gov.…

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French President Calls for Major Increase in Nuclear Power, Offshore Wind

February 12, 2022
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France, already a world leader in nuclear power generation, plans to build at least six new reactors, with President Emmanuel Macron on Feb. 10 saying the country will consider building an additional eight on top of that as it also moves forward with developing small modular reactors (SMR).

Macron, who is up for re-election in April, made the comments during an appearance Thursday at GE Steam Power’s manufacturing site at Belfort in eastern France. He said nuclear power is critical to the country’s efforts to increase its output of carbon-free electricity as it moves away from coal and natural gas. Macron also said his country would add more renewable energy, including as many as 50 offshore wind installations that would enable France to have 40 GW of offshore wind generation capacity in service by 2050.

French officials recently said the country would allow its last two operational coal-fired power plants to operate far more than usually permitted through at least the end of February due to about a dozen of France’s 56 existing reactors being offline for maintenance.…

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