Sunday, January 10, 2016

London Array smashes offshore wind farm record

The London Array offshore wind farm smashed its monthly output record during December, according to new figures released late last week.

The giant 175-turbine offshore array generated 369,000MWh of clean power, well in excess of its previous monthly best of 317,000MWh, which was set last November.

London Array Limited, which is owned by a consortium of E.ON, DONG Energy and Masdar, said the capacity factor for the month reached 78.9 per cent.

The two successive record months took overall output for the year to 2,500,000MWh, enough to meet the needs of more than 600,000 UK households.

"Both the monthly and annual figures are excellent results for London Array and show the contribution we are making to the country's energy supply as well as the UK's renewable energy targets," said Jonathan Duffy, general manager of London Array, in a statement.

He added that while above-average winds this winter had helped deliver the record output levels, the performance was also the result of improvements in the company's maintenance efforts.

"We have pushed very hard over the past year to build on our earlier successes and develop our approach to turbine maintenance and repair," he said. "Together with key contractors DONG Energy and Siemens we have focused on operational efficiency and expanding the amount of time our technicians are able to work offshore. This has helped ensure we extracted the maximum power from the wind and kept turbine availability above 98 per cent over the winter."

Duffy said the record output meant the site had helped prevent the release of 1,075,000 tonnes of carbon emissions last year.

The update came in the same week as new data from National Grid confirmed the UK wind energy as a whole smashed a series of records during 2015.

Wind generated 11 per cent of UK power, up from 9.5 per cent in 2014, with wind turbines providing enough electricity to power 8.25 million homes.

The final quarter of the year saw wind provide a record 13 per cent of UK power, while December set a monthly record with 17 per cent of Britain's electricity demand met by wind energy.


from Home - business_green http://ift.tt/1kYM0ou


Advertisement

Sourced by "Home Hacks". Scouring and supporting the art of DIY home projects by sharing links and information provided by numerous active reputable DIY veterans and company's. Any projects you start please be of proper age, follow all required safety measures, and use the required protective equipment when handling any chemicals, power tools, or during any construction project. If you need advice regarding your next project we suggest visiting Contractor Talk.