Monthly Archives: April 2017

Renewable energyor at least one form of ittook a big step forward this week when Denmarks Dong Energy, the largestoffshore wind company on the planet, announced its intention to construct a pair of wind projects off the coast of Germany without any government subsidies. TheFTreports:

In an advance for what has been one of the most heavily subsidised types of renewable power, Denmarks Dong Energy said it would rely on wholesale market prices instead of extra government support for the projects in the German North Sea. []

The zero subsidy bid is a breakthrough for the cost competitiveness of offshore wind and it demonstrates the technologys massive global growth potential as a cornerstone in the economically viable shift to green energy systems, said Dongs head of wind power, Samuel Leupold.

The cost of both solar and wind energy has been falling at a steady rate in recent years, but its not been something weve pinned our hopes on, for a few reasons. First, renewables have been on the cusp of breaking through for decades, always being sold as the energy source of the future but showing little progress in becoming the energy source of the present. Much of that has boiled down to cost: these energy sources struggle to compete with fossil fuels on price, and their success thus far has therefore relied on government support. Nowhere has this been more evident than in Germany, where clean energy has been propped up by subsidies called feed-in tariffs, whose costs have been passed along to consumers (German electricity prices are among the highest in Europe).

Renewables also face a number of challenges as their share of energy mixes grows. Lacking cost-effective and scalable power storage options, wind and solar cannot be consistently relied upon to supply a gridwhat happens when the sun doesnt shine and the wind doesnt blow? That intermittency isnt just a threat to reliability of supply, it also wreaks havoc on grids thatwere not constructed with this sort of variability in mind. This problemand the stress it places on power gridsbecomes more pressing the larger renewables share of an energy mix becomes, which limitshow far wind and solar can go, even if they were capable of competing on price.

Dongs announcement is an undeniable sign of progress for offshore wind power. If the company can successfully demonstrate that its possible to profitably construct and operate a wind farm without subsidies, the cost criticism of renewables will begin to weaken. That said, it should be noted that this is something of a special case. These new farms are in a particularly windy location (smart siting should always be a primary concern for new energy projects), and theyre close to existing projects, which will allow Dong to piggyback on existing infrastructure. Moreover, the projects Dong bid on wont begin operating until 2024, which allowed the company to project lower operating costs on the expectation that the turbines that will eventually be constructedwill be larger and more efficient than those currently available at present. In other words, this is a bet that offshore wind will be a moneymaker seven years from now.

This achievement also does little to address concerns about the security of supply or grid stability issues. Indeed, one of the big reasons why Dong thinks its able to snub subsidies is the fact that the company wont have to pay the cost of connecting its projects to the grida cushy deal Germany set up for the company, and one that is a departure from industry practice. There are clearlymany more wrinkles to iron out.

With all of those caveats still in mind, lets give credit where credit is due: given the right set of conditions, offshore wind isnt far from becoming a viable energy option. As researchers continue to make clean energy technologies cheaper and more efficient, renewables reliance on subsidies will wane. If and when that happens, the industry will still have a host of other hurdles to clear, but these energy sources are moving in the right direction, and thats excellent news for future global energy security.

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Offshore Wind Turns a Corner - The American Interest - The American Interest

An offshore wind farm at the center of a LIPA plan to address spiking electric demand on the South Fork will produce excess energy when its needed least, and fall short of a sharply expanding summer peak load, a recent analysis found.

In a response to questions from Newsday, James Manwell, director of the Wind Energy Center at the University of Massachusetts, found that while effective in helping offset a portion of soaring peak demand when conventional energy is most expensive the planned wind farm will be least productive during the peak summer months, when visitors flood the South Fork and additional power is needed most.

In general, for sure in the Northeast, the winds tend to be higher in winter than in summer, Manwell said, while the loads go way up in summer. Thats a bit of a mismatch for sure.

The projects 15 turbines will be able to produce a maximum of 90 megawatts of energy, but because the wind doesnt blow all the time, Manwell estimated that the average actual capacity will be just under half that amount. A megawatt of offshore wind energy powers about 360 homes. Developer Deepwater Wind says the array will provide energy for up to 50,000 homes.

The state comptrollers office recently reported that Long Island customers will pay $1.62 billion over 20 years to buy all the emission-free energy the array produces. The cost for energy from the project would average about 22 cents a kilowatt hour over 20 years, around three times that of conventional energy.

Manwell called the notion of using offshore wind to address peak power needs an interesting idea.

One normally wouldnt think of it as such, because you just cant turn on the wind turbine as you would a gas-powered plant. Note that most of the load is in the summer, Manwell wrote in a summary of his findings. Wind speeds are lower in the summer than other months, but still high enough to result in significant generation.

In general, Manwell found, 90 percent of the power generated by the wind farm would be used to reduce the annual electrical demand on the South Fork. He noted the turbines would have some additional benefit of addressing the summer peak by varying amounts. The increasing summer peak is the reason PSEG Long Island sought bids for new power sources on the East End.

Most days, the South Fork uses about 88.5 megawatts of energy. But in the summer, it more than doubles to 190, according to the report. When that happens, the wind farm will be able to reduce the peak by just about half.

Manwell used a computer model that matched wind speeds in the area off Rhode Island, between Block Island and Marthas Vineyard, where the wind farm will be constructed. His program looked at each hour of the year, calculated the wind turbine generation and compared it with the electrical demand.

PSEG in response to Newsday questions acknowledged it used similar techniques to Manwells but different tools during its development of the South Fork solution.

The two analyses measured different sets of parameters, some of which overlap, PSEG said. Where there is measurement of similar parameters, the results produced in the [Manwell] report are generally consistent with the results of our analysis.

PSEG noted, however, that Manwells report did not include the impact of energy storage, steps to reduce consumption and transmission enhancements. One would expect the integration of these technologies into the solution to increase the percentage utilization of energy on the South Fork.

For its part, project developer Deepwater Wind said that while it agreed with Manwells overall findings that appear to show the wind farms output generally aligns with [electric demand] on the South Fork, it took exception with some conclusions.

Deepwater noted that Manwells study used slightly less powerful turbines, but more of them, to reach the 90-megawatt total, and noted the total annual output he projected was about 10,000 megawatt hours less than its own projections.

Deepwater agreed with Manwells finding that the array is expected to produce a significant portion of the South Forks energy needs, including during peak demand period.

As for the cost, Deepwater said, The appropriate comparable cost is that of building a new fossil-fired generator on the South Fork, where its very difficult and expensive to build anything, or a solar renewable energy facility elsewhere on Long Island. . . . Our cost is competitive with that of each of those.

PSEG and Deepwater noted that other technologies, including large batteries to store excess energy from the array and remote-controlled thermostats to help lower summer electrical demand at Hamptons customers homes, will be also be used on the South Fork to moderate the peaks, and store the power for later peak periods.

Moreover, PSEG will simultaneously solve the South Fork peak demand problem with a $513 million series of power cables and upgrades that will cost all LIPA ratepayers about $2.48 a month. LIPA projects the wind farm and other technologies will cost about $1.19 a month when completed in 2022.

Robert Amundsen, an energy-management expert at the New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury, said LIPAs plan to use wind energy to address a growing peak need raises questions.

From an operation standpoint it doesnt really make sense to consider a wind farm as a peaking resource because the idea of peak is to have the power when you need it, and turn it off when you dont, he said. The wind farm is not like that. Thats not to say its not a great idea. But it doesnt by itself solve your peak power problems. You need to have either enough power in the area or to import it from somewhere else.

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Offshore wind farm may not meet peak summer demand on South Fork - Newsday

In order to resolve concerns about the visual impacts of its proposed wind farm off the coast of Maryland, developer US Wind has offered to move the first line of turbines farther offshore, as far as five miles to the east.

According to Paul Rich, US Winds project development director, this proposal is the start of a dialogue with Ocean City officials and is intended to demonstrate the companys willingness to modify the project layout.

Recently, the Maryland Public Service Commission (PUC) held two public meetings to review applications for the Offshore Renewable Energy Credit (OREC), made available thanks to the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013.

At the first meeting, held on March 25, US Wind pitched its proposed project, a 750 MW installation approximately 12 miles offshore in the Maryland wind energy area. The company expects that the wind farm will create approximately 5,000 manufacturing jobs and produce $16 billion in economic output.

According to US Wind, 67 people at the meeting spoke in support of the project plans, in addition to written testimony from Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh praising US Winds application.

Although no one in attendance openly opposed the project, Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan expressed concerns about the impact on the ocean view.

Attempting to address the issue head-on, Rich says he quickly approached the mayor and requested a meeting with the city council to present the wind farm and its many potential benefits.

On April 3, at the second public meeting, Rich was invited to give his presentation, which included visual renderings of the proposed project.

After seeing how near to shore thewind farm would appear once built, the Ocean City Council unanimously voted to send a letter to the PUC, the governor and other local authorities opposing the visual pollution for its potentially negative impacts on tourism and property values.

Wasting no time, Rich sent a letter in response to the mayor and council within the week, acknowledging their concerns and proposing to push the wind farm five miles farther offshore. According to US Wind, this move would dramatically reduce the viewshed impacts for Ocean City at least 35%, if not more.

In an interview with North American Windpower, Rich explains, In an effort to be responsive, I wanted to express to them, soon after the meeting, that were open to discussing whether or not it makes sense for us to move the wind farm further east and minimize the viewshed impacts a little bit more.

Emphasizing the developers willing attitude, he says, We just want to be responsive and good corporate citizens to react quickly to what we heard from Ocean City and the mayor, and were hoping theyll have the same approach.

Rich adds that he hopes theyll look to the success of offshore wind in Europe and even to the newly developed Block Island Wind Farm in Rhode Island for reassurance.

Built by Deepwater Wind the other developer being considered for the OREC by the Maryland PUC the Block Island Wind Farm is the only other offshore wind farm currently operating in the U.S. The 30 MW, five-turbine project began operations in December 2016.

In the spirit of full cooperation, US Wind has already begun redesigning the project in an attempt to address Ocean Citys concerns.

Moving the turbines back beyond the 12-mile range would inevitably add to the project cost approximately $5 million, considering export cables run approximately $1 million per mile but US Wind is ready and willing to take it on.

Concerning equipment, Rich says relocating the turbines would not require a change in turbine model or type or height of the towers. As of now, the developer has the option of using Siemens 4 MW turbines or GE 6 MW turbines.

In my letter that I sent to them, I said were doing the engineering to understand what it looks like to move them as much as five miles further east, and my request was that we have a meeting as soon as they have time to talk through this.

There shouldnt be a wall but, rather, a membrane for transparent conversation around these issues that can lead to the best project possible, he explains.

If given the green light, the first phase of the project would be in service in 2020, with subsequent phases each year until the full build-out by 2023.

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US Wind Tackles Viewshed Concerns For Maryland Offshore Wind Project - North American Windpower

Photo: Heerema Offshore Marine

Netherlands-based Heerema Marine Contractors (HMC) says it has received notice from ConocoPhillips about itsintention to enter into a contract for a major offshore decommissioning project in the North Sea.

Under the contract Heerema Marine Contractors and its partner AF Gruppen will remove and dispose of platforms connected to the Ekofisk field in the North Sea. The contract includes Engineering, Preparation, Removal & Disposal (EPRD) of four platforms with a total tonnage of approx. 36,000 tonnes.

HMC says the platforms are to be removed and disposed from 2017 to 2022.

HMC did not specify which vessels it would use for the project. The company currently owns three of the worlds largest crane vessels: the semi-submersible crane vessel (SSCV) Thialf, the crane-equipped deepwater construction vessel (DCV) Balder, and SSCV Hermod. HMC also currently developing a the new-generation semi-submersible crane vessel, the Sleipnir, which is scheduled for delivery in 2018. The Sleipnir equipped with two cranes of 10,000 metric tonnes lifting capacity each and a reinforced deck area of 220 meters in length and 102 meters in width, which will make it the largest crane vessel in the world.

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Heerema Wins Major Offshore Decommissioning Project in North Sea - GCaptain