Gwynt y Môr

Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm
Location of Gwynt y Môr off the coast of Wales
Country Wales, United Kingdom
Location off the coast of North Wales, UK
Coordinates 53°27′N 03°35′W / 53.450°N 3.583°W / 53.450; -3.583Coordinates: 53°27′N 03°35′W / 53.450°N 3.583°W / 53.450; -3.583
Status On-line
Construction began January 2012
Commission date 18 June 2015
Construction cost €2bn
Owner(s) RWE Npower (50%)
Stadtwerke München (30%)
UK Green Investment Bank (10%)
Siemens (10%)[1]
Operator(s) Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm Limited
Wind farm
Type Offshore
Site area 80 km2 (30.9 sq mi)
Max. water depth 12–33 m (39–108 ft)
Distance from shore 18 km (11.2 mi)
Hub height 98 m (322 ft)
Rotor diameter 107 m (351 ft)
Power generation
Units operational 160 X 3.6 MW turbines
Make and model Siemens Wind Power: SWT-3.6-107
Nameplate capacity 576 MW

Gwynt y Môr (English: Sea Wind) is a 576-megawatt (MW) offshore wind farm located off the coast of North Wales and is the second largest operating offshore windfarm in the world.[2] The farm has 160 wind turbines of 150 metres (490 ft) tip height above mean sea level.[3]

Planning consent for the project was granted on 3 December 2008. The project has a value of 2 billion Euros, of which 1.2 billion Euros were spent on turbines and electrical connections. Construction began in 2012, power production started in September 2013, construction phase ended in November 2014, and final commissioning occurred in June 2015.[4] As of 2015, it is the second largest offshore wind farm in the world.[5]

Design and planning

As with all offshore wind farms in the UK the Crown Estate[6] owns the seabed at Gwynt y Môr. It has agreed to lease the land to npower renewables. The wind farm will be located close to the existing North Hoyle and Rhyl Flats offshore wind farms. These projects are wholly or partly owned by RWE npower renewables, a subsidiary of German company RWE. In the case of Gwynt y Môr, RWE holds 50%, Stadtwerke München holds 30%, Siemens holds 10% and UK Green Investment Bank holds 10%.[7]

With 160 turbines[8] of 3.6MW Siemens SWT-3.6-107, Gwynt y Môr will be Wales' largest wind farm. The output of 1,950 GWh per year is capable of powering around 400,000 homes, or 30% of the homes in Wales. This prevents the release of about 1.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.[8][9]

Planning consent for the project was granted on 3 December 2008.[10] The project has a value of 2 billion Euros. 1.2 billion Euros will go to Siemens for turbines and electrical connections.

Two floating experimental LIDAR wind measurement stations have been tested at the site for two years.[11]

Construction

Construction work began offshore in January 2011 when pieces of rock were laid on softer parts of the seabed to secure the foundations of the turbines.[12] Work began on laying undersea cables from the windfarm to the shore in August 2012.[13] In order to feed electricity into the national grid, a substation was built near St Asaph in Denbighshire.[13]

Power production started in September 2013.[14] Final commissioning was completed on 18 June 2015.[4][5]

In 2013 120 construction jobs were placed under the axe because the company that employed them almost fell into recession however after swift action the business managed to regain profit and the jobs were saved.

See also

References

  1. ↑ 4coffshore.com Developers - Owners - Operators, 2014
  2. ↑ www.rwe.com; accessed 10 August 2015
  3. ↑ http://www.rwe.com/web/cms/en/1252456/rwe-innogy/sites/wind-offshore/in-operation/gwynt-y-mr/tech-and-spec/
  4. 1 2 windpoweroffshore.com, David Weston, UK: RWE has completed the construction phase of the 576MW Gwynt y Mor project ahead of final commissioning next year, 24 November 2014
  5. 1 2 "World’s second largest offshore wind farm opens off coast of Wales". Wales Online. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
  6. ↑ "The Crown Estate". Retrieved 25 July 2007.
  7. ↑ greeninvestmentbank.com 31 March 2014: UK Green Investment Bank invests £461m in the UK offshore wind sector
  8. 1 2 RWE Innogy, Stadtwerke München and Siemens build offshore wind farm Gwynt y Môr
  9. ↑ Go-ahead for wind farm puts Wales on track to meet clean energy targets
  10. ↑ "Giant wind farm gets the go-ahead". BBC Wales. 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2008-12-03.
  11. ↑ Weston, David. "Lidar test completed at Gwynt y Mor" Windpower offshore, 20 February 2015. Accessed: 25 February 2015.
  12. ↑ "Gwynt y Môr: Wind farm work to begin offshore near Llandudno". BBC. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  13. 1 2 "Gwynt y Mor windfarm: Sea cable laying work starts". BBC. 8 August 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  14. ↑ WalesOnline: Gwynt y Mor, Wales' largest offshore wind farm, generates power for first time

External links

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