Northwind NV has received statements of compliance for site assessment and site specific design assessment from GL Renewables Certification (GL RC). The Northwind Offshore Wind Farm will be located on the Bank Zonder Naam (Lodewijkbank) off the coast of Zeebrugge in Belgium. Construction of the wind farm, which includes 72 Vestas V112 turbines, begins this year, with completion scheduled for 2014.
The statements of compliance were presented to Frank Coenen, CEO of project developer Northwind NV, at the Offshore Wind Power USA conference in Boston.
Within an assessment of site design conditions, the site conditions such as environmental and soil conditions are checked. Site-specific Design Assessment guarantees the compliance of the wind park design to the latest state-of-the-art. It covers assessment of load assumptions and design of the wind turbine including foundation with respect to site conditions. Especially wake effects, seismic conditions, complex terrain and extreme temperatures will be taken into account. Both modules have been assessed according to GL RC’s “Guideline for the Certification of Offshore Wind Turbines, Edition 2005”.
“The key to realising successful wind energy projects lies in making the correct strategic decisions in the early stages of project development,” explains Andreas Schroeter, Managing Director of GL Renewables Certification. “Completion of those two modules is an important step in realising the project”.
Frank Coenen, CEO Northwind, comments: “We are very proud of this nomination which is for us the recognition of the quality we all strive for. At Northwind excellence and safety have always been our top priorities. Our mission is to deliver high standard projects and to push innovation in wind energy forward, allowing us to produce more and cheaper electricity tomorrow”.
Recently, GL RC published its new “Guideline for the Certification of Offshore Wind Turbines”, Edition 2012. The Guideline was compiled in cooperation with its Wind and Marine Energy Committee. The updated guideline tracks the main developments in the offshore wind industry, for example, the increased size of turbines and mitigation of loads using advanced, intelligent control systems. Every aspect of development from blade tip, to foundation and power export cable is considered and it also provides a fully integrated design and analysis concept for offshore wind turbines.
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Press release, April 3, 2013; Image: gl