Vestas Racks Up Offshore Wind Orders

Vestas has received orders to supply wind turbines for three offshore wind projects, two fixed-bottom wind farms in Taiwan, and one floating wind project in France.

The turbine maker has secured a 295 MW order for the Zhong Neng offshore wind project, located off the coast of Changhua County, Taiwan.

The project is being jointly developed by Taiwan-based China Steel Corporation (CSC) and Danish fund manager Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP). This marks the third offshore project between Vestas and CIP in Taiwan, with a combined capacity of almost 900 MW.

Zhong Neng will feature thirty-one Vestas V174-9.5 MW turbines. Upon the project completion, Vestas will also service the turbines through a 15-year Active Output Management (AOM 5000) energy-based Service Agreement.

The V174-9.5 MW™ turbines being supplied by Vestas for the Zhong Neng offshore wind project will be the most localised offshore wind turbines in Taiwan to date and will be based on local manufacturing and sourcing of 19 components from local Taiwan-based companies, including blades by Tien Li Offshore Wind Technology from their facility in Taichung Harbour, Vestas said.

”Beyond our considerable investment in and development of the local supply chain, we are also building up our offshore service fleet, adding another long-term contract to our portfolio. I am delighted that CSC and CIP have entrusted Vestas with the operation and maintenance of the wind turbines to 2039,” said Alex Robertson, Vice President and General Manager at Vestas Taiwan.

Deliveries for this project are expected to begin in 2023 and it is expected to be fully commercially operational in 2024. Once completed, the project will generate enough clean power to supply up to 300,000 Taiwanese households annually.

Marina Hsu, Managing Director of Copenhagen Infrastructure Service Co., which is owned by CIP-managed funds, said: ”We believe we can build on the successful foundation established by the previous Changfang and Xidao projects and thereby mature the local supply chain for the Zhong Neng project to further enhance quality, delivery, and competitiveness.”

Taiwan’s Foxwell Energy Corporation Ltd. has placed a similar order of 31 Vestas V174-9.5 MW wind turbines for the 295 MW TPC Offshore Wind Generation Project Phase 2. The project is developed and owned by Taiwan Power Company (TPC) and will be constructed by Foxwell.

Located off the coast of Changhua County, the Taichung port will be used for the pre-assembly work of the turbines. Upon the project completion, Vestas will also service the turbines through a 14-year full scope, production-based availability guarantee, Service Agreement, ensuring maximum energy production for the project.

The V174-9.5 MW turbines being supplied by Vestas for the project will be based on local manufacturing and sourcing of 19 components from local Taiwan-based suppliers, the turbine manufacturer said. Vestas’ supply chain and suppliers in Taiwan have so far invested close to EUR 280 million in local supply chain infrastructure, which has resulted in more than 1,500 new jobs.

”Vestas now has 1.2GW of V174-9.5 MW™ projects with long-term service contracts under development or construction in Taiwan, and we are fully committed to our Taiwanese service operations and being the best partner for the long-term business needs of our customers such as TPC and Foxwell,” said Srdan Cenic, Vice President and Head of Offshore Sales at Vestas.

Deliveries for this project are expected to begin in 2024 and it is expected to be commercially operational in 2025.

”This is the first sizable offshore wind project that is wholly invested by a Taiwan company (TPC), and the first being undertaken by a leading Taiwan turn-key EPCI contractor in the Taiwan Straits, so the Government has given a great deal of attention to us,” said David Poo, President of Foxwell Energy.

The third order was placed by Ocean Winds, the international offshore wind energy company created by EDP Renewables (EDPR) and ENGIE for the 30 MW Éoliennes Flottantes du Golfe du Lion (EFGL) floating wind farm offshore France. The pilot project is being developed by Ocean Winds in partnership with the Banque des Territoires.

The contract includes the supply, transport, installation, supervision, and commissioning of three V164-10.0 MW wind turbines.

These will be installed on floating foundations in Port-la-Nouvelle and towed to their final location over 16 kilometres off the coast of the Leucate-Le Barcarès area in the Mediterranean Sea in water depths of 65 to 80 metres.

”We are very proud of this important partnership with Vestas, that puts the EFGL project on the right track to starting construction only a few weeks after reaching our final investment decision,” said Grzegorz Gorski, COO Ocean Winds.

”On the eve of new floating tenders in France, the EFGL project represents both the technological and the environmental concretisation of what floating wind sector is now capable of, proving it is more than ready for commercial scale.”

The project also includes an Active Output Management (AOM 5000) agreement, for the maintenance and service of the wind park over the next 18 years.

”This order showcases our commitment to the French offshore wind ambition, which aims to achieve 40 GW of capacity installed by 2050,” said Benoît Gilbert, Senior Director Offshore Vestas Mediterranean.

‘‘To that end, we will continue providing leading technology like our V164-10.0 MW turbine, which has demonstrated unparalleled competitiveness when it comes to reducing the levelised cost of energy of a floating wind project.”

With this project, Vestas’ V164-10.0 MW wind turbine has reached more than 1 GW of capacity installed or under construction worldwide, and in total Vestas has installed more than 7 GW of offshore wind globally since 1995, the company said.

Follow offshoreWIND.biz on: