GE Topples Vestas as World’s Biggest Wind Turbine Maker
Bloomberg 3/10/2021 William Mathis
(Bloomberg) General Electric Co. became the top wind turbine installer in the world last year as generous subsidies supercharged the market.
Renewable power developers added a record 96.3 gigawatts of wind turbines in 2020, up 58% from the year before, according to research from BloombergNEF. With solar, wind is becoming one of the cheapest ways to produce electricity and a key part of governments’ efforts to eliminate dependence on fossil fuels.
GE and Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co. Ltd. lead the way in the booming U.S. and China markets and were the top two suppliers of turbines globally. The result means Vestas Wind Systems A/S is bumped from the top spot for the first time in five years.
Maritime Activity Reports, Inc.
Credit: Seacat
UK-based offshore vessel operator Seacat Services has said that its recently launched catamaran Seacat Rainbow has gone straight on to a long-term charter at the Beatrice offshore wind farm.
Seacat Rainbow will support Operations & Maintenance activity for the service team working at the Beatrice offshore wind farm, joining its sister vessel Seacat Weatherly, which is currently on a charter with wind turbine maker Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
Both vessels are Chartwell 24 catamaran designs by naval architect Chartwell Marine. Each vessel can accommodate 24 industrial personnel, alongside four crew. They feature advanced engine and hull design, a large foredeck and safety features such as step-free access, sliding handrails and unrestricted visibility from the wheelhouse.
Offshore Wind Connections 2021 will be held on 21 and 22 April and will use technology to provide an “immersive” experience for remote attendees.
The specialist event, run by Team Humber Marine Alliance, has partnered with Aura, which has developed the innovative platform to create a “digital twin” of its Aura Innovation Centre (AIC) part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund and led by the University of Hull.
OWC 2021’s headline sponsor is Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
Team Humber Marine Alliance chair Andrew Oliver said: “Although you will take part in OWC 2021 from your desk, you will feel that you are inside the AIC building and the technology offers incredible potential for networking.”
Construction of Wind Farm Fryslân
In the past period, work has been done, in spite of the COVID-19 pandemics, laying 55 kilometres of cables on shore and 92 kilometres of cables in the IJsselmeer, driving in piles for the 89 foundations, building the substation at Breezanddijk and creating the construction island and nature reserve at Kornwerderzand. Frisian companies have been actively involved in the construction of the wind farm. And, in the future they will be involved in the management and maintenance of the wind farm as well.
Economic returns to the region
The province is underlining its promise of a wind farm from and for the province of Fryslân by investing hundreds of thousands of euros from the returns of sustainable initiatives annually throughout Fryslân. This means that green returns spring forth from other green returns, thereby creating a string of sustainable investments in the region. The province also will invest a third of the revenues from its particip