Gamesa, a global technology leader in wind energy, is exhibiting for the 3rd consecutive year at the Offshore Wind 2013 trade fair, one of the industry’s premier events, in Manchester, UK, from 12-13 June.
At this year’s fair, the company is showcasing the development and evolution of its first offshore turbine platform: Gamesa 5.0 MW offshore.
This offshore turbine platform, with a 128 m rotor diameter and a modular and redundant design, ensures reliability and maximises energy output. The pioneer turbine in this family, the G128-5.0 MW, includes the technology proven and validated by Gamesa for the 4.5 MW turbine, along with the know-how and experience gained through its use. The company invested more than half a million engineering hours in the turbine’s design process.
Gamesa has installed its first G128-5.0 MW offshore prototype at the Arinaga Quay in Gran Canary Island. This is the Spain’s first prototype offshore wind turbine. Currently, the company is working on the turbine’s electrical assembly and grid connections, after completing assembly of the main parts (tower, nacelle and blades) of the wind turbine.
The blades, manufactured at a Gamesa plant in Aoiz (Navarre), each span 62.5 metres and weigh 15 tonnes. They are the largest turbine blades ever produced and transported in Spain and are among the largest ever manufactured in Europe.
The nacelle, manufactured at the Tauste (Zaragoza) factory, is 12.5 metres long, 4 metres tall and wide and weighs 72 tonnes.
Meanwhile, the nearly 90-metre tower was manufactured by Windar (a joint venture between Gamesa and Daniel Alonso).
The company expects the turbine to begin operating in the third quarter of this year and aims to secure certification in subsequent months. This would enable installation of the initial offshore units in 2014.
Gamesa in late 2012 obtained design certification for its offshore turbine from independent organisation DNV. The DNV endorsement heralded a major leap forward in the system’s development, as a guarantee of the turbine’s launch, commercial rollout and manufacture in coming years.
[mappress]
Press release, June 12, 2013; Image: gamesa