by Jeremy Beaman: A Danish manufacturer announced it will try out a prototype of a nearly thousand-foot offshore wind turbine next year…
in what will be an inaugural demonstration for “the tallest and most powerful wind turbine in the world.”
Vestas said Friday it plans to assemble and install its V236-15 MW offshore prototype turbine at an onshore testing center in Western Jutland, Denmark, during the second half of 2022, with its first operation set for some time in the fourth quarter.
“Colleagues across Vestas have worked very hard and collaborated closely to ensure the rapid progress in developing and assembling the V236-15.0 MW prototype, and this announcement is an important step forward for Vestas and our customers,” said Anders Nielsen, the chief technology officer for Vestas. “Getting the prototype turbine in the ground will underline how the V236-15.0 MW will raise the bar in terms of technological innovation, industrialization and scale in the wind energy industry.”
The 280-meter (919-foot) tall turbine has a production capacity of 80 GWh a year, or enough output to power some 20,000 European households, according to the company.
The prototype’s blades, which will be manufactured beginning later this year, extend to 115.5 meters, or about 379 feet. That gives the turbine an area of about 51,428 square yards.
Vestas, the turbines of which generate clean electricity in 83 nations across the globe, estimated that the single turbine has the capacity to displace 38,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
