Majority of offshore wind projects now undergoing licensing process for environmental investigations in Brazil are listing 15 MW as the wind turbine capacity of choice.
While there are a few variations in references to the 15 MW turbine technology planned to be used, most of these are listed as Vestas’s model with a 236-metre rotor diameter, for which the serial production of nacelles will start in 2024.
One of the projects in Brazil has also, at least as an early-stage guideline, opted for the 9.5 MW model with a 174-metre rotor diameter from the Danish OEM, which last month signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the government of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte to support the development of wind projects off the state’s coast.
Vestas’s technology is referred to for 22 offshore wind projects on a list of a total of 55 projects looking to obtain environmental investigation approval.
There are also five projects stating the usage of 15 MW wind turbines of an unnamed OEM and two that listed units of this capacity but with a 246-metre rotor diameter, also leaving the manufacturer unnamed.
Siemens Gamesa’s 14 MW turbine with a 222-metre rotor diameter is named as a go-to in six projects, with one more opting for its 10 MW model with a 193-metre rotor diameter.
The company’s 14 MW turbine, which was installed offshore Denmark last year, can reach up to 15 MW using Siemens Gamesa’s Power Boost function.
Of the world’s biggest offshore wind turbine suppliers, GE Renewable Energy is also on the project list in Brazil, with four developments naming its Haliade-X with a 12 MW output as the technology that would be used.
There are also seven projects for which it is stated would use wind turbines of a 20 MW capacity. These are also not referring to any specific manufacturer, but they do note the rotor diameter of this 20 MW model as being 265 metres.
The number of submissions for licences to carry out environmental assessments for offshore wind projects in Brazil has increased from 2020, when Equinor first announced its plans in the country, and significantly jumped over the past few months, with Shell and TotalEnergies also unveiling their entrance in the country’s offshore wind market.
Equinor has ramped up its offshore wind activities in the meantime, as reported in the Premium section on Offshore Energy last week, and several projects now undergoing review have European developers behind them, with a couple of floating wind developers also entering the process with the country’s Institute for the Environment and Natural Resources (IBAMA).
As reported in January, the Government of Brazil issued a Decree at the beginning of this year, which will enable the implementation of necessary offshore studies and the identification of areas suitable for the development of offshore wind projects.
The country’s Ministry of Mines and Energy will be in charge of carrying out the studies, selecting the offshore wind zones, as well as organising subsequent auctions.