Siemens secures offshore turbine deal

Riffgat Offshore Wind Farm will deploy 30 Siemens 3.6 MW turbines in Germany's North Sea, generating 108 MW to power 100,000 homes, with installation, grid connection, and maintenance secured by EWE, Enova, and Siemens.

With Germany slowly beginning to enter the offshore windfarm market, Siemens Energy has won a contract to supply wind turbines for the Riffgat windfarm in the North Sea.

Owned by German energy and gas provider EWE AG and Enova GmbH & Company KG, part of Norwegian company Enova, the contract will see Siemens provide 30 of its 3.6megawatt MW turbines for the project. Capable of generating up to 108 MW, the Riffgat windfarm will provide electricity for up to 100,000 German homes when commissioned in late 2012. Siemens has been contracted to install, connect and commission the wind turbines, as well as provide maintenance for the first five years.

EWE is already a partner in Germany's first offshore windfarm, the 60MW Alpha Ventus project, located 45 kilometres 28 miles north of the island of Borkum. Last July, the windfarm received its first turbines for installation, and by the end of 2009, the windfarm was finished with six Areva Multibrid M5000 turbines and six of REpower's new 5M turbines. The facility will provide enough power for about 50,000 homes.

Offshore wind power is now finally picking up impetus in Germany, too, said René Umlauft, CEO of the Renewable Energy Division of Siemens Energy. Riffgat will be one of the first commercial windfarms in German waters, alongside Siemens' second Baltic Sea contract project work. Together with EWE and Enova, we're bringing Germany a big step forward in establishing ecofriendly, sustainable power supply.

Dr Thomas Neuber, EWE's chief officer of procurement and production, added: Signing of the contract for the supply of wind turbines is a key step toward implementation of the Riffgat offshore windfarm. With the erection of Alpha Ventus, Germany's first offshore windfarm, EWE has paved the way for offshore power generation in Germany, and now we want to reap the benefits of our pioneering achievements with Riffgat.

The Riffgat windfarm will be erected 15 kilometres northwest of the island of Borkum, near the Borkum West project area to the west. Initial civil works on the six squarekilometre site are scheduled to commence next year.

Siemens Energy has established itself as a leading player in the offshore turbine market, having an installed capacity exceeding 1,000 MW, with a Scottish windfarm contract underscoring growth, and another 3,000 MW of projects lined up. The company is looking to become a key player in the UK's massive rollout of offshore windfarms in the coming decade and recently announced plans to invest £80 million US $123 million in the country to build a production plant for offshore turbines.

Siemens is now evaluating sites in the east and northeast of the country, particularly those with suitable harbours. The plant will eventually employ 700 people. Half of Siemens' current offshore capacity is already located in UK waters amid the British wind boom today and beyond.

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