The giant Horns Rev windfarm development off Denmark confirms the country’s leading role in the renewable energy sector of Europe, rivalling the position of its neighbour Germany. The project, it appears, has put wind in the sails of the European race to be first in the field.
Opportunities in the UK
Jens W. Bonefeld of Denmark’s Tech-wise – a subsidiary of electricity producer Elsam – is one of these wind power experts. In 1998 he was appointed project manager for Horns Rev windfarm development off the west coast of Denmark and is now involved in the creation of a windfarm on the Shell Flat sandbank in Liverpool Bay, some 8km offshore Blackpool. Other companies working on this project include Elsam, Shell Renewables and Celt Power, a joint venture between Japan’s Eurus Energy and Scottish Power - one of the largest windpower producers in Scotland.
Led by energy minister Brian Wilson, the British government has made an ambitious commitment to windpower as a means of renewable energy and as a tool for reducing CO2 emissions. The goal is to increase renewable electricity sources to 10% of the UK total needs by 2010, and 20% by 2020. Windpower will be the most important source to achieve these targets.
"The UK has a very good windpower potential due to its location," says Bonefeld. He also highlights Germany which offers similar opportunities, as do the Netherlands, Belgium and Sweden, although these are on a slightly smaller scale.
Denmark sets high targets
Denmark has had a focus on windpower for more than 20 years, and its commitment to offshore windfarms is due to the fact that there is no more room for these onshore. The country also has many square kilometres of low water-depth areas of 5-15 metres that are ideal and financially optimal for windfarms.
In western Denmark, 25% of the electricity currently comes from windpower, while the figure for the country as a whole is 20%. The long-term goal is 50% by 2030. At present, most of the energy still comes from coal-fired power stations, but some electricity is also produced by gas-fired power stations using the Danes’ natural gas in the North Sea. Unlike Sweden and Germany, Denmark does not have any nuclear power stations.
160 MW from Horns Rev
The prestigious Horns Rev windfarm is a pioneering project. Located 14 km from land and covering an area of 20 square km, with water depths varying from 6.5 metres to 13.5 metres, the windfarm consists of 80 windmills with a total output of 160 megawatts.
The Horns Rev windmills have a rotor diameter of 80 metres and are located 560 metres from each other. To achieve the greatest possible windfarm output, the ideal situation is for the windmills not to "hide" each other, preferably spaced at a distance of seven times the rotor diameter so that reductions in output are kept at a reasonable level.
Tech-wise was responsible for the design and project management of the park. Even as an experienced civil engineer who has built all types of power stations, Jens W. Bonefeld admits that he is always wondering whether it is windy on Horns Rev and whether production is going according to plan. This is despite the fact that the operations now are taken over by Elsam Wind Service. This company runs all Elsam’s windmills, which produce a total output of 430 megawatts.
"We have been the focus of an incredible amount of attention, and there has been a great deal of interest in our homepage, www.hornsrev.dk," says Bonefeld. "From being a rather new and special field, the windpower industry is now extremely important to many countries – not least as a result of the Kyoto Agreement and its goals of using more renewable energy and reducing CO2 emissions. More windpower stations than nuclear power stations are currently being installed worldwide. Large companies such as General Electric, Shell, Eon and Vattenfall now participate in this new, future-oriented industry, which currently employs 20,000 people in Denmark alone. It will be exciting to see how this sector develops in future," he adds.
Offshore commitment
State secretary Wilfried Voigt, who was a Green Party candidate in the latest German Federal Government (Forbundsdagen) elections, is a self-confessed windpower enthusiast. A decision to limit windfarms to 1% of Schleswig-Holstein’s land surface has led to a commitment to offshore farms in both the North Sea and Baltic Sea.
In order to minimize the potential for conflict, the Land Government of Schleswig-Holstein has defined the limits of offshore development from the outset, and has issued early confirmation that the national park, Wattenmeer, will be a no-go area. The installation of windfarms will also avoid trawling areas.
"Offshore offers the potential for the new windpower industry to join with the traditionally strong maritime economy of Schleswig-Holstein in the development of new future-oriented projects," states Voigt. "Our own shipyards, which are not currently riding the crest of a wave, will be able to embark on the production of offshore tower sections," he continues.
The Federal Ministry for the Environment estimates that up to 25,000 megawatts of capacity might be installed in the coastal waters of Germany. Given these expectations, it is no surprise to find all eyes turning to this area.
"On land, we have many small windmills that were established at the beginning of the 90s. These will gradually be replaced by larger windmills with higher capacity. We can then reduce the number of windmills significantly and further protect the environment," says Voigt. "Our target of covering 50% of our electricity consumption through windpower generation by 2010 is based on both onshore repowering and the construction of offshore windfarms," he adds.
State secretary Voigt even believes that windpower may promote world peace. "Wars can be fought over oil, but not over wind and sunshine," he concludes.