GE announces development of the 12 MW Haliade-X offshore wind turbine

• 6 years ago (2018-03-02)
• David Flin

Offshore wind 119

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GE Renewable Energy has unveiled its plan to develop the Haliade-X, described as the world’s largest and most powerful offshore wind turbine. The Haliade-X will have a 12 MW direct drive generator, and a gross capacity factor of 63 per cent, and it will, according to GE, produce 45 per cent more energy than any offshore wind turbine currently available. GE said that it will invest over $400 million over the next three to five years in development and deployment of the Haliade-X.

John Flannery, Chairman and CEO of GE, said: “We want to lead in the technologies that are driving the global energy transition. Offshore wind is one of those technologies, and we will bring the full resources of GE to make the Haliade-X programme successful for our customers.”

The Haliade-X will have 107-metre-long rotor blades that will be designed and manufactured by LM Wind Power. These blades will be the longest offshore blades to date. GE said that the platform is designed to offer greater efficiency in generating power from the available wind. With a 63 per cent gross capacity factor, the Haliade-X is 5-7 points above the current industry benchmark.

Jérôme Pécresse, President and CEO of GE Renewable Energy, said: “The renewables industry took more than 20 years to install the first 17 GW of offshore wind. Today, the industry forecasts that it will install more than 90 GW over the next 12 years. This is being driven by lower cost of electricity from scale and technology. The Haliade-X shows GE’s commitment to the offshore wind segment, and it will set a new benchmark for the cost of electricity, thus driving more offshore growth.”

GE Renewable Energy aims to supply its first nacelle for demonstration in 2019 and ship the first units in 2021.