These Norwegian Floating Wind turbines can also be placed far Out To Sea

Statoil’s new Hywind wind park, off the east Scottish coast, may not, actually, be the “world’s first floating wind farm,” as the Norwegian oil and gasoline firm claims. That honor without a doubt belongs to Japan and its iconic floating container 12 miles from Fukushima Dai-Ichi (sure, that Fukushima). but, possibly we’re being unkind to level that out. That Statoil is constructing a floating wind park in any respect is lovely exceptional. indeed, you marvel why it had to stretch the reality about its just right news.

Floating wind generators supply three benefits over turbines fixed to the ocean-mattress (probably at the least). First, that you can situation them deeper into the water: right out into the center of the ocean, perhaps. Two, you might be now not producing what critics of offshore farms name “visible air pollution.” And three, you are harnessing the wind the place it can be greatest and most dependable. Statoil’s 30 megawatt turbine armada will take a seat at “Buchan Deep,” a neighborhood off Peterhead, where the water is more than 100 meters deep. it is anticipated to start out producing energy in 2017.

The machines are enormous: three times as tall because the Statue of Liberty (see the illustration in the slide express) and enough to provide power for 20,000 properties. Statoil is striking $230 million into the undertaking, a part of a new vitality solutions division it can be growing. the company hopes to open a brand new market in deep-offshore wind, constructing on its experience in deep offshore systems and Scotland’s neatly-centered oil and fuel logistics industry.

the enormous query, as ever, is price. Offshore wind generators—just like the ones off the japanese coast—are mentioned to be eight occasions costlier than these on land. The turbines, installation, and energy connection infrastructure are all dearer. Statoil claims that the present undertaking’s costs are 60% to 70% higher than its Hywind Demo undertaking in Norway, although that’s not virtually enough. To be aggressive with other kinds of renewables—and non-reliant on govt toughen—it figures it desires to chop costs every other forty% to 50% by 2030.