USA: Galion Lidar to Assess Gulf of Mexico Wind Resources

Cutting edge wind scanning device, Galion Lidar, has been deployed on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico along the Texas coast to study the coastal wind resource in order to prospect for a potential offshore wind farm. SgurrEnergy’s flagship measurement device has begun a nine-month deployment by Baryonyx Corporation, a company in the preliminary stage of development of a commercial-scale offshore wind farm.

The GOWind project, which may use Siemens SWT 6.0MW wind turbines, plans to install three turbines for a demonstration phase. The preliminary site specific wind resource assessment is beginning with Galion Lidar’s deployment to inform this first phase of the development.

SgurrEnergy, part of Wood Group, will provide support to Baryonyx Corporation during the deployment and will conduct a monthly data analysis and preliminary energy yield prediction to inform the next stage of the project.

Renewable energy consultant for SgurrEnergy’s Canada office, Nick Capaldo, said: “We are excited to bring our lidar expertise and extensive experience in offshore wind to the GOWind project. Galion’s ability to capture wind speed and directional data and fully characterise wind flow using its remote sensing technology is ideal for this project and we’re looking forward to working with Baryonyx Corporation on the preparation for its development.”

Heather Otten, Chief Development Officer at Baryonyx Corporation, said: “There is a large capacity for offshore wind power in the Gulf of Mexico area and we wanted to deploy a comprehensive measurement device to ensure that we’re properly informed on the wind resource, which is why we selected Galion Lidar.”

SgurrEnergy, in partnership with AREVA Wind, announced earlier this year the launch of the most comprehensive offshore wind energy measurement campaign ever conducted in the industry. The offshore measurement campaign saw the deployment of three G4000 Offshore Galion Lidar devices, on an AREVA M5000-116 wind turbine located in the offshore test field, Alpha Ventus, in the German North Sea.

[mappress]

Press release, October 8, 2013; Image: sgurrenergy