The first North American offshore wind turbine test centre has started development, off the eastern Atlantic shore of the US state of Virginia, by a consortium of Ecofys, Fugro and Real NewEnergy. The project, Poseidon Atlantic, has come about through collaboration between the Commonwealth of Virginia, Northampton County and the Virginia Port Authority with further support from the Dutch government.
The centre will supply testing and certification services providing proof of quality for offshore wind turbines. It will also serve other needs including those of turbine manufacturers running their own research programmes or electricity transmission network operators investigating wind turbine impact on their operations. With space for eight to ten turbines, the facility will have up to 50 MW of wind generation capacity representing a total investment of around US$ 100 to 120 million. The aim is to complete construction before the end of 2012, with the first turbines starting to generate energy by early spring 2013. The facility is expected to run for at least 20 years.
The centre will supply testing and certification services providing proof of quality for offshore wind turbines. It will also serve other needs including those of turbine manufacturers running their own research programmes or electricity transmission network operators investigating wind turbine impact on their operations. With space for eight to ten turbines, the facility will have up to 50 MW of wind generation capacity representing a total investment of around US$ 100 to 120 million. The aim is to complete construction before the end of 2012, with the first turbines starting to generate energy by early spring 2013. The facility is expected to run for at least 20 years.