PORTUGAL TO FLOAT OFFSHORE WIND

Floating wind turbines to be tested off Portugese coast; Portugese utility sees floating platforms as means of cutting high costs of offshore wind farms
Tom Young, 24 February 2009 (Business Green)

"US-based wind turbine developer Principle Power and Portugal's Energias de Portugal (EDP) have agreed to team up on a project to develop a deep-water offshore wind farm off the coast of Portugal using floating wind turbines.

"The development will use Principle Power's WindFloat technology, which sees turbines placed on floating platforms rather than attached to the sea bed. The company argues that the floating turbines are far more cost effective to install in deep water than conventional offshore wind turbines."

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"The project will be developed in three phases – a demonstration turbine, a pre-commercial deployment and a full commercial deployment – in water more than 50 metres deep."

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"…[T]he technology could provide a major boost to the economic viability of offshore wind farms, which currently cost over double that of onshore developments…

"The move is the latest in a seriers of investments from EDP designed to position the company as a major player in the burgeoning global wind energy market…[It] acquired Houston-based Horizon Wind Energy from Goldman Sachs in a €2.15bn deal… [It] paid €8.4m for an 85 per cent stake in Romanian wind power companies Renovatio Power and Cernavoda Power…[It] holds a stake in the €9m [2.25 megawatt] wave-energy Aguçadoura project…off the Portugese coast."