Spanish wind turbine manufacturer Gamesa said it has suspended plans for the installation of a new offshore wind turbine prototype off the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States due to regulatory uncertainties in the U.S. offshore wind market.

Gamesa and Newport News Shipbuilding announced a collaboration to develop a new offshore wind turbine, the G11X-5.0 MW, in September 2010. However, in a statement released by Gamesa, the company said an analysis of current conditions indicates that a viable commercial market in the U.S. is still farther out, or as much as three or four years away, at the earliest.

The two companies initially saw the U.S. offshore wind sector as promising, with the commercial market just a few short years away.

Regulatory issues affecting the level and speed at which projects can be approved; uncertainty surrounding the Production Tax Credit; and the lack of federal energy policies are hampering companies' abilities to secure financing for offshore wind projects and are said to be holding the U.S. offshore wind market back.

Without a mature offshore wind market, Gamesa said it can no longer justify the expenditure of capital and use of engineering and technical resources that would be needed to build and install the G11X-5.0 prototype in the U.S.

The collaborative effort is already approaching completion of the critical design review, which the companies will complete. But plans to install a prototype near Cape Charles, Virginia have been postponed.

If market conditions in the U.S. improve, Gamesa said it intends to "act quickly on future opportunities." But until then, they will continue with plans for the development of offshore technology in Europe, where offshore programs are better supported.

Plans are currently underway with the permitting process for installing the newly developed G128-5.0 MW offshore turbine at Arinaga Quay in the Canary Islands in Spain. – EcoSeed Staff

новинки кинематографа
Машинная вышивка, программа для вышивания, Разработка макета в вышивальной программе, Авторский дизайн