A Chinese firm is about to launch what will be the world’s largest offshore wind turbine when finished.
The nacelle of the H260-18MW offshore wind turbine prototype has been rolled out by CSSC Haizhuang Wind Power, a division of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC).
With a rotor diameter of 260 meters and an individual capacity of 18 MW, the H260-18MW is the biggest and most powerful wind turbine currently on the market or in development.
“The H260-18MW turbine will make a great contribution to the improvement of turbine capacity and efficiency, as well as reducing the LCOE [levelized cost of energy] of offshore wind farms,” read the company statement.
The model edged over MingYang’s MySE 16.0-242 wind turbine and a 16 MW model produced jointly by China Three Gorges Corporation and Goldwind Technology.
According to CSSC, 80 percent of the turbine’s components, including major components such as the blades, gearbox, and generator, were sourced from inside the group. According to the corporation, this localized method was used to prevent supply chain bottlenecks.
The H260-18MW has a swept area of 53,000 square meters, which is about comparable to seven regular football fields.
At maximal wind speed, 44.8 kilowatt-hours of electricity can be created every revolution, and a single unit can produce more than 74 million kilowatt-hours of clean electricity per year, enough just to power 40,000 houses, according to the company.
According to CSSC, a 1 GW wind farm would require 13% fewer wind turbines if H260-18MW units were employed instead of 16 MW units.