17Dec

How WindFlip Will Deliver Gigantic Floating Turbines to Site

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How WindFlip Will Deliver Gigantic Floating Turbines to Site

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To tow the new gigantic off-shore wind turbines now being developed in Europe far out to sea, a Norwegian company has devised a clever and simple mechanism. Their WindFlip tows the turbine out almost horizontal – and then when it gets to the site, tilts it up into position – using only the weight of seawater to do it.

The structure contains 29 air filled compartments. Once at the site each of the compartments inside the Windflip is sequentially filled with water, causing the stern to slowly submerge, so that both the Windflip barge and the turbine it is holding flip up 90°. Then it releases the turbine for connection with a pre-installed mooring spread, and then tips the barge back to horizontal by clearing the ballast tanks of seawater with compressed air.

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12Dec

Why DOE-Funded Floating Turbines May Change Future of Offshore Wind

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Why DOE-Funded Floating Turbines May Change Future of Offshore Wind

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This week, Statoil has an application for a pilot demonstration of their Hywind floating wind turbine 12 miles off the coast of Maine before the new Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for approval. The demo would be the fruition of a project begun in 2009, and funded by the Department of Energy.

Then Maine Governor John Baldacci had visited Norway to inspect Statoil’s Hywind floating turbine project with state and university officials and business leaders and encouraged Statoil to consider his state for deep-water testing of the commercial floating wind turbine technology in the Gulf of Maine. A return visit introduced Norway’s Statoil to turbine construction expertise in Maine, visiting the Vinalhaven wind turbines on the Fox Islands constructed by Cianbro.

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8Dec

First Atlantic Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Deployed

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First Atlantic Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Deployed

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The offshore wind industry passed a milestone recently with the installation of the world’s first floating offshore wind turbine off the coast of Agucadoura, Portugal. The WindFloat project consists of a 2-MW semi-submersible wind turbine that can be deployed without heavy machinery.

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29Nov

Denmark: 100% Renewable Energy by 2050 – 100% Clean Electricity by 2035

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Denmark 100 Renewable Energy by 2050 - 100 Clean Electricity by 2035

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Not quite Scotland’s goal of 100% renewable energy by 2025, but still a highly ambitious one (relative to other countries), Denmark’s newest renewable energy target proposals aim to have wind supplying it with half of its electricity by 2020, and renewable energy supplying it with ALL of its energy by 2050. And all of its power and heat would come from renewables by 2035.

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22Nov

Wind Turbine Big Enough To Land A Helicopter On? Scotland Has It Covered

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Wind Turbine Big Enough To Land A Helicopter On Scotland Has It Covered

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Scotland has an ambitious and admirable goal: 100% renewable energy. Taking steps toward reaching this goal, the Scottish government approved an offshore test site for a new 6MW wind turbine.

2-B Energy, based in the Netherlands, has permission to install an innovative two-bladed wind turbine approximately 70 feet off the coast of Methil in Fife, according to Scottish energy minister Fergus Ewing. 2-B is one of several companies which has a lease in the 2010 offshore wind demonstration leasing round, which is supposed to help develop wind farms offshore and in deep water.

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