Isra-Mart srl:Alstom plans to test 6MW offshore wind turbine at Belwind

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Isra-Mart srl news:

Alstom has entered the race to develop an offshore wind turbine capable of driving down the cost of energy, announcing plans to test its 6MW direct drive permanent magnet machine at the Belwind wind farm.

The French engineering giant yesterday announced it will partner with Belgian wind farm developer Belwind with a view to demonstrating its 6MW turbine at the Belwind site, located near the port of Zeebrugge in Belgium. The two companies are applying for EU funding under the NER 300 scheme to help support the demonstration project.

Alstom also announced it is partnering with independent manufacturer Converteam, which will supply its compact, lightweight Advanced High-Density direct drive permanent magnet generator for the turbine.

As a first step, Converteam will equip Alstom's two 6MW offshore wind turbine prototypes, which will be installed during the winter. A pre-series model is then planned for 2013, leading to series production in 2014.

The two companies claim the turbine will be the largest direct drive permanent magnet generator for use in offshore wind turbines.

They hope the design will drive down the cost of generating offshore wind energy, claiming it will reduce stresses on the turbine while delivering higher yields from its 6MW capacity. The turbine's weight has also been optimised to reduce installation and infrastructure costs, the firms said.

Converteam chief executive Pierre Bastid said the generator will have the largest torque of any permanent magnet generator built to date. "With this project we are making a big step in commercialising very large direct drive wind generators," he said.

In January, Alstom and EDF Energies Nouvelles announced that they would bid jointly for projects using the planned turbine under a recently launched French offshore wind tender.