“From the first ‘steel in the water’ in July to the last deck lift in November, we’ve completed a season of firsts – not only for the Block Island Wind Farm but also for the launch of a new American offshore wind industry,” said Deepwater Wind CEO Jeffrey Grybowski. “We are proud of the work we’ve accomplished so far, but we’ve only just begun – and 2016 will be a year to remember.”

“Rhode Island is proud to be home to the nation’s first offshore wind farm, and we’re quickly becoming a center of innovation in this growing industry,” said Rhode Island Governor Gina M. Raimondo. “With this project, we’re putting hundreds of our local workers to work at-sea and at our world-class ports to build a project that will help diversify Rhode Island’s energy mix and protect our environment. I applaud Deepwater Wind for their successful first offshore construction season, and I look forward to seeing the project fully operational and generating renewable energy in 2016.

Over the course of the busy 18-week construction period, approximately 200 workers (100 of them local) and a dozen construction and transport barges, tugboats, crew ships and monitoring vessels were active at the project’s port facilities and the wind farm site roughly three miles off the coast of Block Island.

All told, more than 300 local workers will be involved with building the Block Island Wind Farm. Deepwater Wind is utilizing four Rhode Island ports – at Block Island, Galilee, Quonset Point and the Port of Providence – to complete construction and staging.

All construction activities were completed in accordance with strict environmental rules set by state and federal government agencies. In 2013, Deepwater Wind voluntarily agreed to a series of protective measures to minimize potential underwater noise impacts on North Atlantic right whales during wind farm construction.

“We are especially proud that our work was done while upholding very high environmental standards,” Grybowski said.

The focus this winter and spring now turns to turbine assembly and submarine cable installation work.

Deepwater Wind and General Electric are establishing a new temporary manufacturing facility at the Port of Providence for the assembly of turbine components. GE – which recently completed its acquisition of Alstom’s offshore wind unit – is supplying the 6-MW Haliade 150 offshore wind turbines for the Block Island Wind Farm. Approximately 60 local workers will be involved in this aspect of the project.

Over the next six months, GE will install the critical electrical, mechanical, and safety equipment within the bottom tower sections now at ProvPort, with the remaining tower sections arriving in Rhode Island next year. (Each turbine tower consists of three sections, with a total height of approximately 270 feet, and a total weight of approximately 440 tons, once assembled.)

The assembly activities at ProvPort will complement construction and staging work completed at Quonset Point, in North Kingstown, R.I. Fabrication of some of the foundation components was completed by local welders at Quonset’s Specialty Diving Services in early 2015, and the port continues to host construction work and vessel staging for the wind farm. Quonset will also host the project’s long-term operations and maintenance facility.

Submarine cable installation is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2016, with erection of the five offshore wind turbines set for the summer of 2016. The project is scheduled to be in-service and generating power in the fourth quarter of 2016.

Deepwater Wind
http://dwwind.com

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The first components for assembly of Block Island’s offshore wind turbines will soon arrive by ship at a temporary manufacturing facility at the Port of Providence.

Deepwater Wind and GE are establishing a new temporary manufacturing facility at the Port of Providence for the assembly of turbine components for the Block Island Wind Farm.

GE, which recently completed its acquisition of Alstom’s offshore wind unit, is supplying the 6-MW Haliade 150 offshore wind turbines for the Block Island Offshore Wind Farm.

This week, the first five of 15 total tower sections are expected to arrive by ship in Providence. Those 95-foot tall sections will be off-loaded at the new temporary manufacturing facility that GE is building at the Providence port.

Over the next six months, GE will install the critical electrical, mechanical, and safety equipment within the bottom tower sections. The remaining tower sections will arrive in Rhode Island next year. Each turbine tower consists of three sections, with a total height of approximately 270 feet, and a total weight of approximately 440 tons, once assembled.

Approximately 60 local workers will be involved in this aspect of the project. Deepwater Wind and GE have teamed up with several local contractors to assist with this work, including Aladdin Electric, Bay Crane New England, Essex Newbury, E.W. Audet & Sons, Aero Mechanical Inc., Waterson Terminal Services, GZA GeoEnvironmental, VHB, and Fuss & O’Neill.

Workers from the laborers, carpenters, elevator constructors, IBEW, ironworkers, plumbers and pipefitters, cement masons, operating engineers and stevedoring unions will be involved.

All told, more than 300 local workers will be involved with building America’s first offshore wind farm.

“Rhode Island continues to lead by example with the construction of the nation’s first offshore wind farm,” Governor Gina M. Raimondo said. “This innovative project is being assembled by local workers right here in the Ocean State. By working with our partners at Deepwater Wind and GE, we are advancing important energy and environmental goals while also creating local jobs that get Rhode Islanders back to work.”

“From Providence and Quonset Point to the waters off Block Island, the Ocean State is leading the growth of a new American industry,” said Deepwater Wind CEO Jeffrey Grybowski. “This work at ProvPort brings one of the world’s most innovative companies to the City of Providence. And, just as important, we’re putting more Rhode Islanders to work and giving them the experience they need to help grow this industry.”

“Expanding the economic opportunities at Providence’s port is a priority of mine,” said Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza. “This announcement is an important step as we continue to expand our economy and create good jobs in our city. I am pleased too that the City was able to help ProvPort expand to accommodate this project and I am excited to welcome Deepwater Wind and GE to our waterfront.”

“This is a major milestone for the Block Island project and for sustainable energy in the U.S. We are proud to be part of the team making it happen,” said Anders Soe-Jensen, President and CEO of GE’s offshore wind unit.

“We are pleased to support Deepwater Wind’s historic efforts to establish the first offshore wind warm in the United States. In addition to assisting Deepwater Wind with this project, we believe ProvPort is perfectly situated to continue to position Rhode Island as a leader in offshore wind development as we offer 3,500 feet of linear berthing space, 20 acres of open lay down area and 40’ of deep draft,” said Paul Moura, chairman of ProvPort’s Board of Directors.

The assembly activities at ProvPort will complement construction and staging work completed at Quonset Point, in North Kingstown, R.I. Fabrication of some of the foundation components was completed by local welders at Quonset’s Specialty Diving Services in early 2015, and the port continues to host construction and repair work and vessel staging for the wind farm. Quonset will also host the project’s long-term operations and maintenance facility.

“The tradesmen and woman of the RIBCTC are excited to start the manufacturing and assembly phase of the Deepwater Wind project, creating desperately needed work opportunities for our members right here in ProvPort,” said Michael F. Sabitoni, President of the Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades Council.

“The opportunity to work on a first-in-the-nation project alongside GE and Deepwater will no doubt grow our ability and workforce to be the hub for offshore wind here in the U.S.”  

Meanwhile, Deepwater Wind is capping off a busy first offshore construction season at the project site, roughly three miles off the coast of Block Island.

Since the first “steel in the water” in July, Deepwater Wind has completed installation of the five steel jacket foundations and pile driving for those foundations. Installation of the deck platforms is expected to finish in the coming weeks.

Submarine cable installation is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2016, with erection of the five offshore wind turbines set for the summer of 2016. The project is scheduled to be in-service and generating power in the fourth quarter of 2016.

Deepwater Wind
http://dwwind.com

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There, in the choppy Atlantic surf, a company called Deepwater Wind started building what will be America’s first offshore wind farm. The farm will have five wind turbines, each rising to twice the height of the Statue of Liberty. When completed in late 2016, they will generate a combined 30 MW and turn Block Island into the most powerful coastal enclave in the northeast (with apologies to the Hamptons).

But there’s more to the project. It is also the physical example of GE’s future following its acquisition of Alstom’s power and grid business, which closed earlier

A jacket foundation is set for a turbine off of Block Island. The turbines will be installed Spring or summer of 2016.

The Block Island farm brings together Alstom’s massive Haliade turbines, whose blade tips will reach 600 feet above the water, and GE’s innovative gearless permanent magnet generators that can produce 6 MW. The combination has the potential to transform the renewables business in the U.S. and abroad.

Until now, Europe has been the hub of wind innovation, says Bryan Martin, head of U.S. private equity at the financial firm D.E. Shaw. The company is financing the $290 million Deepwater farm, and Martin believes that bringing Alstom’s wind turbines and GE’s power generation technology under one roof will change the wind industry’s competitive landscape. “We’re very excited about GE’s acquisition of Alstom’s power businesses,” Martin says.“GE and Alstom getting together provides the first real competitor to Siemens” for offshore wind farms in Europe, Martin says.

The rotor of each Haliade turbine is nearly one-and-a-half times the length of a football field, or 150 meters. All that torque spins GE’s 6-MW direct drive permanent magnet generator. The design lets GE engineers eliminate the gearbox, reduce the number of moving parts, cut the need for maintenance, and lower the operating cost.

The generator weighs 150 tons and will sit 100 meters in the air. It’s split into three separate electrical circuits. Even if two circuits go offline, the turbine can still produce 2 MW on the remaining circuit. Low maintenance and redundancy are hugely important, especially for offshore installations, where treacherous waters and high wind can delay a repair trip for days or weeks.

Jeffrey Grybowski, chief executive of Deepwater, says the farm will power all of Block Island, which currently relies on expensive diesel fuel. The farm will also lower carbon emissions by an estimated 40,000 tons annually. It could also help cut electricity bills for Block Island residents by up to 40%. “Offshore wind can power much of the U.S. East Coast, not least in the Northeast, where the wind is strong and we need energy,” Grybowski says. “And we can employ lots of people doing it.”

The artist’s rendering hints at the size of the Haliade turbines. Their rotors will sport 150-m diameter and each unit will be capable of generating 6 MW for a total of 30 MW.

The Block Island farm will be the first offshore wind farm in the U.S. But the potential for U.S. offshore wind energy is massive — over 4,000 gigawatts (GW), which amounts to more than four times the nation’s annual electricity production, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan has also increased interest in onshore and offshore wind energy, presenting a new opportunity for industry.

So far, a total of 47,000 onshore turbines have been installed in the U.S. wind market, where GE is a major player. The Alstom power and grid acquisition now gives it a stronger offshore offering and also one of the broadest and deepest renewables portfolios in the industry. The combined businesses will also have expanded project expertise and financing for power projects.

“Today offshore wind is a small market with big potential, and the Block Island project sits at the leading edge of innovation,” says Anders Soe Jensen, CEO of GE’s offshore wind unit. “We’re proud that GE will again be making energy history with the first American offshore wind farm.”

The farm will have five wind turbines, each rising to twice the height of the Statue of Liberty. When completed in late 2016, they will generate a combined 30 MW.

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