US: Offshore leasing process begins off Massachusetts

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), in partnership with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, has chosen to publish a Request for Interest (RFI) to gauge interest in future wind energy development offshore Massachusetts.    

This is the first step under the “Smart from the Start” OCS renewable energy initiative announced by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. It allows BOEMRE to identify priority Wind Energy Areas for potential development.

Wind Energy Areas are offshore locations that appear most suitable for wind energy development. Data collected for these high priority areas will inform government and industry assessments and planning, and will promote greater efficiency in the siting and permitting process for offshore wind projects. 

BOEMRE has worked closely with Massachusetts officials and tribal representatives to facilitate the commercial leasing process for renewable energy development off the southern coast of Massachusetts, said BOEMRE director Michael R. Bromwich.

BOEMRE will use industry responses to gauge specific interest in the commercial development of wind resources off the Commonwealth’s shores. If responses indicate that there is no competitive interest in this area, the agency may proceed with a noncompetitive lease process. 

According to the Bureau, whether the leasing process is competitive or noncompetitive, it will include public participation as well as a thorough environmental review conforming to all applicable laws. 

The Massachusetts RFI area was selected through consultation with the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Task Force, an intergovernmental coordination group led by BOEMRE. Task Force members include federal and state agencies, tribal governments, and local entities that have a role in permitting, reviewing or regulating resources or activities that are involved in energy development on the OCS.

The RFI area off the coast of Massachusetts is approximately 12 nautical miles (nm) south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, and extends approximately 31 nm seaward, south to the 60 meter depth contour, then east approximately 65 nm, then north approximately 31 nm. The area is approximately 2,224 square nm and contains 321 whole OCS lease blocks as well as 163 partial blocks.

Moray Offshore signs new offshore lease agreements

Moray Offshore Renewables (MORL), the joint venture company owned by EDP Renewables and SeaEnergy Renewables, has signed three lease agreements with The Crown Estate Commissioners.

These pacts will lead to further development of offshore wind power generation at three sites in the outer Moray Firth. The three sites are expected to have a capacity of 1,000-1,140 MW.

On 8 January 2010, The Crown Estate announced the successful development partners for each zone, and signed an exclusive zone development agreement with Moray Offshore Renewables Limited as their partner to develop wind energy in Zone 1, which is located in the Moray Firth, around 13 miles from the Caithness coast.

Each of the three windfarm sites within the first phase of the development have been named in recognition of Scottish Engineers who have made major contributions to civil, marine and electricity generating developments, including Robert Stevenson, Edward MacColl and Thomas Telford.

AREVA bags €400 million contract

AREVA has won a contract worth €400 million with Trianel, an association comprising German urban electric utilities, to supply 40 5MW M5000 turbines for the Borkum West II offshore wind farm located in the North Sea.

Under the terms of the agreement, AREVA will also provide commissioning, testing and maintenance services. Foundations, transport and erection offshore are excluded from the scope. The contract comprises an additional forty M5000 turbines within the year 2011.

Situated 45 km off the northern coast of the island of Borkum, Borkum West II is the biggest wind-energy project in the German North Sea. It is directly adjacent to Alpha Ventus, Germany's pilot offshore wind farm where AREVA supplied 6 wind turbines.

Operations are scheduled to start at the turn of the year 2012/2013. Once completed, the turbines will generate a total output of 200 MW.

Dong Energy, Siemens Wind Power sign agreement

Siemens is to supply test turbines for research and development purposes to Dong Energy as part of a new agreement between the two entities.

The agreement is part of Dong Energy’s establishment of a new demonstration programme for offshore wind turbines.

Siemens will supply two newly developed 6.0 MW offshore wind turbines. Besides generating more power, the new turbines are expected to be easier to maintain, as they are based on gearless, direct drive technology.

The two 6 MW turbines can be installed at Dong Energy’s demonstration sites in the UK and Denmark.

Furthermore, as part of the test programme, Siemens will supply an updated version of Siemens’ 3.6 MW turbine with a 120-metre rotor for use at DONG Energy's Avedøre Holme test site.

As part of the demonstration programme, a number of tests will be carried out on the turbines with a view to observations and test results being used in the work connected with the development of Dong Energy’s future offshore wind farms.

The total investment for DONG Energy related to the construction of the three turbines is expected to amount to around DKK 450 million.

Vestas enters 2011 with clutch of new contracts

Vestas Central Europe has received an order for 17 V112-3.0 MW turbines from Windpark Groß Eilstorf GmbH.

The Groß Eilstorf Wind Farm is located in Lower Saxony, Germany. The project has a total capacity of 51 MW and the turbines are scheduled for installation in 2011. 

The contract includes supply, installation and commissioning of the turbines, foundations, a Vestas Online Business SCADA system and a 15-year service agreement.

In another deal, Vestas has received, through Ansaldo Energia, an order from Winbis S.p.A. for the delivery of 22 V90-3.0 MW wind turbines for the Bisaccia Wind Farm, which will be installed in the municipality of Bisaccia in Campania, Italy.

WinBis is part of the EGL Group, an operator in the fields of production, distribution, and trading of electricity.

The contract includes supply, installation and commissioning of the turbines and a ten-year service agreement. Delivery of the turbines will start at the end of 2011.

US wind industry forged ahead in 2010

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the national trade association of America’s wind industry, emphasises that the wind power industry combated challenges in 2010 and laid the foundations for a strong return in 2011.

While the industry “saw the all-too-real impacts of having no long-term U.S. policies toward renewable energy”, the industry nevertheless made significant advances in 2010, said Denise Bode, CEO of the Association.

Bode highlighted that wind power supply chain manufacturers continued to announce new U.S. plants despite an uncertain economic climate. The industry reached over 50% domestic content for turbines installed in the US. In addition, advances were made in regional transmission plans, the market for smaller turbines grew 15%, and offshore wind took major steps on the path to the first U.S. installations, said Bode.

The year 2010 closed out with Congress extending by one more year the Section 1603 Investment Tax Credit for renewable energy, a policy that helped the industry emerge as a bright spot in the US economy and keep 85,000 Americans working even at the depth of the recession, Bode said.

The numbers posted by the US wind industry in the third quarter of 2010 made for its slowest quarter since 2007. According to AWEA, once the year’s final numbers are tallied, they are expected to show that China installed approximately three times as much wind-powered electricity as the US in 2010, and Europe twice as much, as US installations fell to just over half of 2009.

Factors in the US decline included an absence of long-term US energy policies (such as a Renewable Electricity Standard), resulting in an unstable business environment, and utilities being less eager to enter wind energy power purchase agreements.