Daily Archives: April 9, 2020

New poll: Americans across party lines support offshore wind by wide margins

In todays world, sometimes it can feel like a struggle getting two people to agree the sky is blue. And yet, in an era of polarized opinions, wind energy has remained an outlierits a bright beacon of consensus. Just a few months ago, Pew found 85 percent of Americans supported expanding the use of wind power.

Now, just-released survey results show this same support extends to offshore wind. Over 80 percent of U.S. voters favor offshore wind, according to a new AWEA-commissioned study conducted by Public Opinion Strategies. Notably, that support is universal. It transcends across political party affiliation, geography, and every demographic group measured.

Although the U.S. only has one operating offshore wind farm today, states up and down the East Coast have made and the offshore wind project pipeline stands at nearly 26,000 megawatts (MW). Thats enough to power millions of homes and businesses with reliable, affordable, clean energy generated in close proximity to many of the countrys largest population centers.

Building that project pipeline could create over 80,000 jobs by 2030 and a new domestic supply chain, while spurring $57 billion of investment into the U.S. economy. Voters are buying this vision of the future57 percent think wind energy will be more important to the U.S. economy than oil and gas 10 years from now. As one would expect, the creation of well-paying jobs and a new economy-strengthening industry transcends party lines.

One of the reasons support for offshore wind extends so far and wide is because its not just an East Coast storyits benefits will extend nationwide. For example, offshore manufacturing and service companies in the Gulf region used their ocean infrastructure experience to help build the countrys first offshore wind project, the Block Island Wind Farm. These businesses are anxious to get back into offshore wind game as large projects are deployed in the waters off our coasts.

Further down the line, offshore wind will bring similar benefits as it grows along the West Coast and in the Great Lakes. These survey results show Americans understand the promise of offshore wind, and they want to see that promise become a reality. Its our job to get to work and deliver.

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New poll: Americans across party lines support offshore wind by wide margins Into the Wind - Into the Wind - The AWEA Blog

Live weather updates on the strong winds, storms Wednesday

4:31 p.m.

The wind advisory was extended for another day, with the alert in effect for South Jersey from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday. It is in effect Thursday through 7 p.m.

Wind gusts similar to Thursday will be likely during the day Friday, with many places 45-50 mph, and a few places even higher. Continue to secure all loose objects outside. Isolated power outages and large tree branches down will be likely.

3:16 p.m.

The severe thunderstorm watch has been cancelled. However, strong winds will remain into the evening and the wind advisory will be in effect through 7 p.m.

Most of the power has been restored to Hammonton. Nearly a quarter of Atlantic City Electric customers were out of power in the 2 p.m. hour. Stafford still has a few hundred customers without power.

More wind reports have come in. Among them, a 71 mph wind gust just north of Barnegat Light, over the water. A 51 mph gust roared through Mullica Township at 2:50 p.m., with a mph 48 gust in Fortescue at 1:40 p.m.

2:47 p.m.

2:40 p.m.

The storms largely split around South Jersey. One exception, though, was Long Beach Island and southern Ocean County.

Harvey Cedars reported a 61 mph wind gusts while Beach Haven reported a 51 mph wind gusts.

The severe thunderstorm watch remains in effect for the shore counties. The watch was dropped elsewhere in the region.

Around noon, a severe thunderstorm watch was issued for all of South Jersey. South Jersey is under a level 2 of 5 risk for severe weather by the Storm Prediction Center, a government agency in Norman, Oklahoma.

A slight risk indicates a few scattered severe storms are possible. The potential for severe weather doesn't guarantee it will occur, but instead highlights the possibility to increase awareness in case storms do develop.

An explanation of the different risk categories for severe thunderstorms.

Damaging winds will be the main threat with the line of storms that comes through. Power outages and snapped tree limbs will be in the realm of possibility. Winds a few thousand feet above our heads are screaming near 60 mph and any thunderstorm can tap into that and bring it down to the surface.

To a lesser extent, hail will need to be watched for. Also, while unlikely, a weak tornado will not be ruled out.

No. Consider that the appetizer for the storms to come.

That line of rain, with embedded rumbles of thunder in Cape May County, were associated with a warm front. Rainfall totals ranged from 0.02 inches in Cape May to 0.43 in Atlantic City, according to the Office of the New Jersey State Climatologist.

Temperatures for 2 p.m. Thursday, according to various computer models. The warmer the air will be, the bettter risk for severe weather, as the sun after the morning rain provided extra juice in the atmosphere for severe weather.

The amount of sunshine, and corresponding temperatures, will be critical to the strength and severity of the storms.

The more sun there is, the more instability it will produce in the atmosphere. The vice versa will be possible as well.

Right now,ThePress forecast is for isolated areas of wind damage, with hail and tornadoes not ruled out.

For that risk to be lowered, temperatures would likely need to stay below 65 degrees with the sun only out for an hour or two.

On the other hand, for a widespread severe weather outbreak, most temperatures would likely need to near 75 degrees. That would mean the sun was out for a few hours and created lots of instability in the air.

So far, the High Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) has been performing the best. The HRRR has daytime highs around 70 degrees for many before the line of storms comes in, keeping the forecast on target.

Additional downed tree limbs and power outages will be possible into Thursday evening as strong northwesterly winds blow. A wind advisory will be in effect from 1 to 9 p.m. to highlight this threat.

Take down any loose objects and garbage cans before the line of storms arrive.

Wind gusts 40-50 mph will be likely during this time. Typically, issues due to winds occur with winds over 45 mph.

Winds at the 850 millibar level, about 5,000 feet above the surface. This provides a good indicator of what the top gusts will be, as winds can get pulled to the ground from here.

Despite the strong northwesterly winds by this point, a few places will still get into minor flood stage.

The back bays will be most likely to get into just minor flood stage. If your street typically floods, move it a block or so. No major roadway will be likely to close.

Coastal flooding has been a concern since the Wednesday morning high tide. This peaked with the Wednesday evening high tide, when up to a foot of salt water flooding occurred on roadways.

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Wind alert extended to Friday as strong storms move offshore - Press of Atlantic City

Arup has appointed Saygin Oytan to head its offshore wind team in the U.S.

As an associate principal in theBostonoffice, Oytan will lead strategic business development initiatives aimed at expandingArups presence in the U.S. offshore wind market.

We are anticipating major growth in the offshore wind market in the US in coming years, saidBrian Swett, Leader ofArupsBostonoffice.

With Sy at the helm as our new Offshore Wind Leader in the Americas, Im confident thatArups offshore wind business will continue to grow and mature in lockstep with the market, providing more services and more value to our clients acrossNorth America.

According to Arup, Oytan brings nearly two decades of experience managing the development and construction of international offshore and onshore wind projects.

His most recent position was as the Director of Offshore Wind for the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA).

Oytan also started up and led Nord Renewable Energy Consulting inEuropeto provide project development, owners and lenders engineering, and transaction advisory services for offshore and onshore wind projects.

Im excited to join theArupteam that has been working diligently to support our international and national clients in offshore wind energy development, Oytan said.

The total size of state commitments to offshore wind is in the range of 26,000 MW to be operational by 2035.Arups global expertise in complex and multi-disciplinary projects is needed in this nascent market.

Continue reading here:

Arup Names US Offshore Wind Head - Offshore WIND

4/8/2020

Hywind Tampen wind farm diagram

OSLO - The Ministry of Petroleum and Industry has approved the plans for development and operation of the Hywind Tampen wind farm. The Snorre and Gullfaks platforms will be the first platforms in the world to receive power from a floating offshore wind farm.

On 11 October 2019, Equinor and the Snorre and Gullfaks partners submitted two updated plans for development and operation to Norwegian authorities.

Hywind Tampen is a pioneering project and a central contribution to reducing emissions from Gullfaks and Snorre, and I am pleased that both ESA and Norwegian authorities have approved the project. We are experiencing very challenging times, and we are focusing on continuing our transition effort while attending to and developing the value on the Norwegian continental shelf and at the same time reducing the climate footprint from our operations, says Arne Sigve Nylund, Equinors executive vice president for Development & Production Norway.

By reducing the use of gas turbines on the fields, the project will help reduce CO2 emissions by more than 200,000 tons per year, corresponding to annual emissions from 100,000 private cars.

The Hywind Tampen investment will be close to NOK 5 billion. Norwegian authorities have granted funding of up to NOK 2.3 billion through Enova. The Business Sectors NOx fund has decided to support the project by up to NOK 566 million.

On behalf of the partners, Equinor has awarded contracts totaling NOK 3.4 billion, subject to final project approval by Norwegian authorities. It is a plus that the oil and gas industry is competitive in renewables projects as well, and the contracts will lead to considerable spinoff effects in Norway. As the whole industry is currently experiencing much uncertainty, it is vital that we progress projects that spur technology development in the renewables segment and create spinoff effects on the Norwegian supplier industry, says Anders Opedal, executive vice president for Technology, Projects & Drilling.

According to a study made by Multiconsult, the Hywind Tampen project will create spinoff effects during the projects life of 1 550 to 3 000 man-years for Norwegian trade and industry. Most of the spinoff effects will occur in the projects development phase.

The wind farm will consist of 11 wind turbines based on the Hywind wind farm concept developed by Equinor. The 8 MW turbines will have a total capacity of 88 MW and meet about 35 per cent of the annual power demand of the five platforms Snorre A and B and Gullfaks A, B and C. The wind farm will be located around 140 kilometers from shore, between the Snorre and Gullfaks platforms, at a water depth of 260 to 300 meters.

Operated from Equinors offices in Bergen, Hywind Tampen is scheduled for start-up at the end of 2022.

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Norway greenlights new wind farm to power offshore production platforms - WorldOil

Tax revenue keeps civilization afloat. But not all taxpayers play by the same set of rules.

With the help of lawyers, accountants, white-shoe professionals and complicit Western governments, the wealthy and well-connected have avoided paying trillions of dollars in taxes. The rest of us cover the difference or, more commonly, cant, leaving treasuries bereft of monies needed to build roads, schools and tackle existential threats like climate change and global pandemics.

Tax havens make it all possible.

By some estimates, about 10 percent of the total output of all the economies in the world is parked in offshore financial centers, held by shell companies that exist only on paper. The cost to governments, in lost revenue, is estimated to exceed $800 billion a year.

The wealthy keep the money to build intergenerational fortunes, creating a new global aristocratic class and exacerbating the divide between the global haves and have-nots.

Multinational companies use the extra cash to reward shareholders and edge out smaller competitors.

Countries that need tax revenue the most lose more tax money, as a percentage of GDP, than wealthy countries. As with other inequities, the poor get it the worst.

Years after Panama Papers, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists remains committed to exposing those who exploit tax havens a long list that also includes corrupt politicians, mobsters, drug traffickers and other criminals who launder cash and assets through offshore companies to throw law enforcement off the scent. The easy movement of illicit money destabilizes governments and helps despots stay in power.

Here is a guide weve assembled to help explain how offshore finance works, and why it matters. If you have questions we havent answered, email us here.

There is no universal definition, but tax havens, or offshore financial centers, are generally countries or places with low or no corporate taxes that allow outsiders to easily set up businesses there. Tax havens also typically limit public disclosure about companies and their owners. Because information can be hard to extract, tax havens are sometimes also called secrecy jurisdictions. Tax havens nearly always deny being tax havens.

All over the world. Some are independent countries, like Panama, the Netherlands and Malta. Others are within countries, like the U.S. state of Delaware, or are territories, like the Cayman Islands.

ICIJ investigations have focused on different tax havens, often depending on the origin and content of documents. Panama Papers, for example, exposed how Mossack Fonseca, one of the biggest offshore law firms in the world, sold thousands of shell companies in the British Virgin Islands to clients around the globe. Mauritius Leaks examined how companies used Mauritius to avoid taxes, while Paradise Papers revealed the secrets of Bermuda, the island where the law firm Appleby was founded.

Some tax havens, like Niue and Vanuatu, have cleaned up their act under international pressure while others, like Dubai, are emerging as new hotspots of illicit wealth.

Mauritius, which was central to Mauritius Leaks, is one example of a tax haven that attracts companies from thousands of miles away.

Money. Tax havens make significant income from fees paid by people and companies who create and use shell companies. Tax havens also create work for lawyers, accountants and secretaries. Mauritius, for example, has said 5,000 people would lose jobs if the country stopped being a tax haven.

A shell company is a legal entity created in a tax haven. Shell companies typically exist only on paper, with no full-time employees, and no office. A single office building in the Cayman Islands, for example, is home to 19,000 shell companies. Rules differ, but the actual owners of many shells are not disclosed in incorporation documents. Some use the term shell company and offshore company interchangeably.

Shell companies only exist, legally, on paper.

Because, like an empty shell, there is nothing inside. A shell company exists, legally, only on paper.

Legal and illegal purposes. Shell companies can hold money, luxury homes, intellectual property, businesses and other assets. They also play a vital role in facilitating the flow of illicit money around the globe.

Rich but otherwise average folk, including dentists and at least one Alabama greengrocer, use shell companies for reasons that may include making it harder for potential creditors including former spouses, displeased business partners or tax inspectors to identify and recoup monies allegedly owed.

Investments made through tax shelters can be especially lucrative, owing to the significant tax savings offshore companies may enjoy.

Bob Geldof, Madonna and U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross are among the bold-faced names that ICIJ has linked to shell companies. Some, like Queen Elizabeth II, say they dont even know they have invested offshore.

Politicians, like Icelands former prime minister, Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson, and Nigerias former senate president, Bukola Saraki, have concealed investments or luxury homes with the help of shell companies. So have their children. Notables include the son and daughter of former Pakistan prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, and Isabel dos Santos, the billionaire daughter of former Angolan strongman president, Jose Eduardo dos Santos.

Drug lords and ladies, bank robbers and arms traffickers, mafia kingpins and queens and bribe takers and makers also use shell companies to obscure their identities and conceal money, assets and illicit activities.

The short answer is no. The longer answer is that it depends on how it is used and where the shell company is created or incorporated. Hiding stolen assets abroad is clearly illegal, but buying a luxury yacht with a shell company may not be. (Hello Microsofts Paul Allen and Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud!). Lawyers and accountants are very good at proposing technically legal ways to spend or stash cash offshore.

Businesses, especially those that transact across borders, can enjoy massive tax savings by routing payments, profits or investments through subsidiaries in offshore financial centers.

A big pharmaceutical company, for example, might set up a new entity in Bermuda or the Netherlands, and sell that entity a patent for a profitable drug. The parent company might then pay a big licensing fee to the offshore company, which in turn would allow it to record lower profits at home and pay a lower tax bill. Drug companies have avoided billions of dollars in taxes this way, according to Oxfam.

Each year, companies avoid paying more than $500 billion in taxes using methods like these. Some pay little or no taxes at all in their home countries.

Notable corporate tax avoiders include Apple, Johnson and Johnson and Skype.

Companies often say shell companies encourage foreign investment and get deals done that wouldnt otherwise. They also incorporate offshore, many say, to avoid paying taxes twice on the same pot of money. Experts say that such defenses are either overblown or mythical.

Want to know more? Watch our reporter Simon Bowers give a TED Talk about uncovering the tax secrets of Nike and Apple in the Paradise Papers.

Experts refer to this as the tax mantra. It allows corporations to appear to be good corporate citizens but does not contradict the fact that many of these companies use loopholes (some of which are subsequently found to be illegal) to avoid paying taxes.

In most cases, it is as simple as an email or phone call. You dont even have to leave your house. In most cases seen by ICIJ, individuals pay someone else to do it for them. Theres a cottage industry of offshore specialists including Mossack Fonseca (now defunct), Appleby and Asiaciti, as weve reported previously eager to make that phone call or write that email on your behalf (for a fee) to set up a shell company.

Rules differ by jurisdiction, but you will usually have to provide a form of identification and answer questions about how you made your money, and the purpose of the new business. Offshore specialists regularly fail to ask these questions.

In the aftermath of the Panama Papers investigation, for example, lawyers around the globe scrambled to try to figure out the identity of their own clients.

Some reporters have gone so far as to set up a shell company for themselves. Listen to NPRs Planet Money do that here. ICIJ partners at Univisions Fusion opened a Delaware shell company for a cat.

Companies like Deloitte, KPMG, Mossack Fonseca, EY, Appleby and Conyers all service (or did serve) the offshore industry.

Consultants, wealth managers and tax lawyers, who advise on how best to avoid taxes and hide money from authorities. Accountants, who sign off on shell company audits.

Costs depend on where you create your shell company and who helps you do it. Some lawyers, including Mossack Fonseca from the Panama Papers, charged $350 to incorporate a company. Other law firms, including Appleby from the Paradise Papers, charged a flat fee of almost $2,000 in one popular tax haven, the Isle of Man, and $2,700 in Bermuda.

Shell companies, corporations or entities come in different forms. While companies and corporations are the most common offshore tool (in Delaware, the British Virgin Islands, Bahamas and Niue), other offshore entities include trusts (Jersey) and foundations (Panama). Each has a different rule, according to a tax havens domestic laws. Trusts are particularly open to abuse because they use ancient legal principles to avoid declaring or defining an owner. Trusts split possible ownership into three: the legal owner of the assets, the person who controls the assets and the person who can enjoy or use the asset.

Confused yet? Thats the point. Complex structures confound tax officials, law enforcement and investigative journalists. Here is one example of a complex structure set up for Abbott labs from our Lux Leaks investigation.

A nominee director can be a person or a company paid to appear on official documents. Shell companies can use nominees, also known as dummies, instead of the companys true owner (or owners) as directors to avoid public disclosure. Nominees perform administrative tasks, including signing minutes of company meetings, but have no real or legal power or control over the shell company. One recent example of a dummy nominee company was the use of Regula by Deutsche Bank.

Tax avoidance versus tax evasion.

According to the traditional definitions, tax evasion is illegal (a crime) but tax avoidance uses legal loopholes to reduce or avoid paying taxes. Increasingly, experts argue that the distinction is blurry; a lot (but not all) of what gets called tax avoidance could be criminalized or overturned if there were a court challenge but much of it remains secret. This grey area has led to the term tax avoision.

The person or company who ultimately owns the shell company, no matter how many nominee directors or subsidiary companies are placed in between him or her and the shell company.

It depends where you live. As a general rule, keeping offshore secrets is no longer as easy as it once was. Many governments, including the United States, can receive information automatically from tax havens and other countries about foreign bank accounts of their own citizens. Other countries, especially developing countries, must make individual requests to tax havens for information. Many jurisdictions, , including the U.S. state of Delaware, refuse to make public registers that would show the beneficial owners of shell companies.

A bearer share allows whoever holds the physical document (the share) to be its legal owner, which can make someone the owner of a shell company. The bearer share is not registered under the name of any person, which means ownership is never recorded. Bearer shares have been banned in many countries because criminals have used the lack of ownership registration to hide crimes and assets.

Transfer pricing occurs when two companies from the same group transact with each other. This happens, for example, when Facebook Ireland sells a service or an asset to Facebook USA. Transfer mispricing is when companies (allegedly including Facebook) avoid or evade taxes by artificially inflating or deflating the value of internally sold services or assets.

Its impossible to know for sure (thats part of the point: its secret.) French economist Gabriel Zucman estimates hat the equivalent 10% of global GDP is held offshore about $5.6 trillion. U.S. economist James Henry estimates as much as $32 trillion.

Panama Papers, first published in 2016, is probably the best known ICIJ investigation into tax havens. It was the biggest journalism collaboration in history, at the time, and led to the resignation of world leaders, criminal convictions and more than $1 billion in recouped money. It built on the work of our previous investigations, Offshore Leaks, Swiss Leaks and Lux Leaks. We returned with Paradise Papers, West Africa Leaks, Mauritius Leaks, and in 2020, with Luanda Leaks.

One reason: some of the most powerful countries in the world are major players. Offshore money flows through overseas territories of the United Kingdom; the U.S. states of Delaware, Wyoming, Nevada and South Dakota; and through Switzerland and the Netherlands.

However, since the Panama Papers was first published, there has been a push in the U.S. to eliminate corporate secrecy. Some experts are optimistic about reform; last year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Corporate Transparency Act.

Well, yeah.

The Laundromat directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Scott Z. Burns

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What is a tax haven? Offshore finance, explained - ICIJ.org

The UK Government timetable for its offshore wind power auction will not be delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) announced that the consultation deadline for its Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction will not be affected beyond its current deadline.

The consultation period, which is scheduled to run for twelve weeks, is due to close on May 22.

The delivery of the fourth round is still expected to take place in 2021.

A UK trade body said it provided certainty for the UK renewable energy sector.

The CfD process traditionally grants licences for big offshore wind projects this year the process is likely to include onshore and floating wind as well as solar power.

A number of large offshore wind developers are expected to be part of the bidding process, alongside a group for new entrants from the UK oil and gas sector.

The previous round saw SSE Renewables win consent for its giant Seagreen Offshore Wind Farm off the coast of Montrose in Scotland.

But, developer EDP Renewables missed out on its 90-turbine Moray West Offshore Wind Farm.

Red Rock Powers Inch Cape Wind Farm off the Angus Coast was also unsuccessful, alongside Shetlands Viking Wind Farm.

RenewableUKs head of policy and regulation, Rebecca Williams, said: Were pleased to see the current timetable for the governments clean power auctions remains on track.

This provides certainty for the industry and investors so we can plan ahead. Holding the next round of CfD auctions in 2021 is vital to secure the much-needed new renewable energy capacity we need to meet net zero.

This will enable consumers to benefit from new cheap power as fast as possible.

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No Covid-19 delay to offshore wind power auction delivery, UK Gov says - News for the Oil and Gas Sector - Energy Voice

The new design is an evolution of Staupers existing and patented Compact Flotation Unit, allowing for a smaller vessel on offshore installations where space and footprint are critical.

(Courtesy Stauper Offshore)

Offshore staff

SANDEFJORD, Norway The Norwegian Patent Authorities have granted Stauper Offshore a patent for its new Compact Flotation Unit (CFU) design.

This applies to a CFU vessel with a secondary point for oil removal as part of the water treatment process.

The new design is an evolution of Staupers existing and patented CFU, allowing for a smaller vessel on offshore installations where space and footprint are critical.

Managing director Rune G. Nilssen said: The new patent will allow us to further reduce the footprint of our technology without compromising efficiency. Space and efficiency are critical factors for any offshore installation.

This new patent enables Stauper to further help operators meet their challenges accommodating space limitations for process equipment.

The CFU is said to be proven in treating produced water down toward zero ppm oil in water. It is also said to be stable, and requiring no energy, with minimal operator interference and maintenance.

04/08/2020

See original here:

Stauper secures further patent for offshore water treatment process - Offshore Oil and Gas Magazine

Shell and Diamond Offshore have mutually agreed the release of the Ocean Valiant rig from its contract.

Diamonds most recent fleet status report, published in February, shows Ocean Valiant was supposed to be with Shell in the UK North Sea from November 2019 until March 2021.

A source said Shell had shelved plans to drill five wells and that the rig would be stacked later this month.

A spokesman for Shell confirmed Ocean Valiant would be released once it completes a well at the Gannet field.

But he said Ocean Valiants agreed scope would be transferred to Diamonds Ocean Endeavor rig, which is already contracted to Shell.

Energy Voice reported in October that Shell was using Ocean Endeavor for drilling work at its Fram gas field as part of a campaign expected to last up to 110 days.

Its understood the Ocean Valiant decision was operational and not linked to any spending reductions which may be triggered by the current crude price slump.

Link:

Shell UK, Diamond Offshore agree release of rig - News for the Oil and Gas Sector - Energy Voice

Arup has appointed Saygin Oytan to lead the companys US offshore wind efforts.

He will be based in Arups Boston office and will head up the companys initiatives aimed at expanding its presence in the US offshore wind market.

Most recently Oytan was offshore wind director at the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA), where he led a range of offshore wind port and supply chain development initiatives.

Arup Boston office leader Brian Swett said: We are anticipating major growth in the offshore wind market in the US in coming years.

With Sy at the helm as our new offshore wind leader in the Americas, Im confident that Arups offshore wind business will continue to grow and mature in lockstep with the market, providing more services and more value to our clients across North America.

Oytan added: I'm excited to join the Arup team that has been working diligently to support our international and national clients in offshore wind energy development. The offshore wind market in the US is growing rapidly, where a capacity of 9040MW is under development with secured financial mechanisms.

State governors, legislatures and energy agencies are boldly moving forward on huge offshore wind programmes and projects.

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Arup hires Americas offshore wind head - reNEWS

Developer Orsted has completed construction of the 338MW Sage Draw project in Texas, its largest onshore wind farm to-date.

Switch-on of Sage Draw, build by contractor Blattner Energy with 120 GE turbines, brings the Danish utilitys installed capacity on land in the country to 1.3GW, with another 800MW of onshore, solar and storage projects under construction and due to enter operations late this year or early next.

Orsted during the past years had become the worlds largest operator of offshore wind, and only two years ago decided to go back into the onshore wind business.

The company in 2013 (then still with the name Dong Energy) had announced it would exit wind on land to concentrate on its offshore plans, and by the end of the following year had sold its Danish, Swedish, Norwegian and Polish onshore wind assets.

In yet another strategic shift, the utility roared back into onshore wind in 2018, a move it cemented with the acquisition of US outfit Lincoln Clean Energy (LCE) in the same year.

The safe completion of Sage Draw amidst the escalating Covid-19 crisis is a testament to the resilience and adaptiveness of the Orsted team and key project partners at Blattner Energy and GE Renewable Energy, as well as financial partners GE Energy Financial Services and BHE Renewables, said Orsted onshore wind CEO Declan Flanagan, LCEs former chief executive.

This underscores the significant role renewable energy can play in continuing to build our economy as we manage through and beyond the current crisis."

Orsted targets reaching 5GW in installed onshore wind capacity by 2025.

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Offshore wind pacesetter Orsted completes its largest land-based project - Recharge