RWE Innogy, the renewable unit of German utility RWE Group, has entered into a joint agreement with Norwegian power firm Statkraft for the development of the 900MW Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm in the UK.

The two firms will have a 50 / 50 stake in the project, which is located off the east coast of the country.

It is likely to involve an investment of £3bn to £4bn ($4.6bn-$6.1bn).

Once operational, the wind farm is expected to produce enough electricity for nearly 800,000 average households in the UK.

Financial details have not been disclosed. The agreement is expected to close by 2017, following which onshore construction will start.

The development and construction phases of the wind farm, which are likely to create 1,900 job opportunities, will be handled through a joint project team of RWE and Statkraft.

The UK Government approved the development consent order (DCO) in July 2013.

Statkraft executive vice-president Jon Brandsar said: “This is an important step for Statkraft in delivering on our strategy for offshore wind.”

Statkraft head of offshore wind Olav Hetland said: “The project itself is blessed with ideal characteristics for an offshore wind farm, including shallow waters, strong wind resource and excellent ground conditions.

“In addition, it is in an area of seabed which Statkraft knows very well from its Sheringham Shoal and Dudgeon offshore wind projects.”

Meanwhile, RWE Innogy CEO Hans Bunting said: “Securing partners for projects such as Triton Knoll has been a key objective in our renewables strategy and this latest successful partnership with Statkraft highlights the attractiveness of our developments and RWE’s continued commitment to offshore wind.”

Polish renewable energy developer Polenergia has awarded a 48MW turbine delivery contract to Danish wind manufacturer Vestas for the Mycielin wind power project in Poland.

According to the unconditional agreement, Vestas will supply, install and commission 24 V110-2.0MW turbines, deliveries of which are expected to be completed later this year.

Located in western parts of the country, the onshore wind farm should start operations by the fourth quarter of this year.

Polenergia has also signed a five-year service agreement (AOM 5000) for the facility. This includes the provision for VestasOnline Business SCADA solutions.

Polenergia vice-president Michal Kozlowski said: “It is an important step towards achieving Polenergia’s goals in wind energy development. We are happy to work with Vestas as a turbine supplier again.”

Vestas Northern Europe president Klaus Steen Mortensen said: “We are happy to be chosen as the wind turbine supplier and service provider for this wind power plant and to consolidate our market leadership in Poland.”

Vestas has already provided around 570 wind turbines for the project, with a combined generation capacity of 1,200MW. In addition, more than 30% of wind installations in Poland are part of Vestas’ portfolio.

Renewable energy use has overtaken other power sources such as nuclear in Scotland, according to the latest UK Government statistics.

In the first six months of 2014, renewable sources produced 32% more power than any other source.

In total, the renewable sector produced 10.3 terawatt-hours (TWh), compared with 7.8TWh from nuclear power generation, which was previously the region’s primary source of electricity.

On the other hand, coal and gas-fired plants in total produced 5.6TWh and 1.4TWh respectively during the first half of 2014.

Scottish Renewables chief executive Niall Stuart said: “The announcement that renewables have become Scotland’s main source of electricity is historic news for our country, and shows the investment made in the sector is helping to deliver more power than ever before to our homes and businesses.

“This important milestone is good news for anyone who cares about Scotland’s economy, our energy security and our efforts to tackle climate change.

According to Stuart, the renewables industry has come a long way in a short space of time and there is still plenty of potential for further growth.

He continued: “Offshore wind and marine energy are still in the early stages of development but could make a big contribution to our future energy needs if they get the right support from government.

That support includes the delivery of grid connections to the islands, home to the UK’s very best wind, wave and tidal sites.”

Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said the figures indicated that the country was making good progress towards reaching its target of producing 100% of electricity from renewable sources.

Renewable energy use has overtaken other power sources such as nuclear in Scotland, according to the latest UK Government statistics.

In the first six months of 2014, renewable sources produced 32% more power than any other source.

In total, the renewable sector produced 10.3 terawatt-hours (TWh), compared with 7.8TWh from nuclear power generation, which was previously the region’s primary source of electricity.

On the other hand, coal and gas-fired plants in total produced 5.6TWh and 1.4TWh respectively during the first half of 2014.

Scottish Renewables chief executive Niall Stuart said: “The announcement that renewables have become Scotland’s main source of electricity is historic news for our country, and shows the investment made in the sector is helping to deliver more power than ever before to our homes and businesses.

“This important milestone is good news for anyone who cares about Scotland’s economy, our energy security and our efforts to tackle climate change.

According to Stuart, the renewables industry has come a long way in a short space of time and there is still plenty of potential for further growth.

He continued: “Offshore wind and marine energy are still in the early stages of development but could make a big contribution to our future energy needs if they get the right support from government.

That support includes the delivery of grid connections to the islands, home to the UK’s very best wind, wave and tidal sites.”

Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said the figures indicated that the country was making good progress towards reaching its target of producing 100% of electricity from renewable sources.

The renewable energy industry has united to launch a series of ‘key tests’ for the UK political parties ahead of the next General Election.

Leading renewable energy trade bodies including the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA), the British Hydropower Association (BHA), the Renewable Energy Association (REA), the British Photovoltaic Association (BPVA), RenewableUK, Scottish Renewables and the Solar Trade Association (STA), have launched a renewables manifesto statement and campaign hosted on the Action for Renewables website.

The trade bodies have set out six key tests for the next Government, and a campaign has been launched encouraging members of the public to write to the different party leaders to encourage them to take forward the principles into the General Election.

“The renewable energy bodies have come together with clear and simple propositions,” said Action for Renewables’ chairman Tony Juniper. “We need consistent and strong backing for renewable energy, not only to cut carbon emissions and tackle climate change, but also to harness the opportunities for growth and jobs and reduce our reliance on dirty fossil fuel imports from insecure parts of the world.

“A range of technologies have important roles to play and I hope voters will contact Party Leaders and ask them to support out manifesto because none of these technologies can flourish without political backing.”

The six key tests laid out by the grouping are:

1. Support the Climate Change Act to keep us on course to meet our carbon commitments and back global efforts to tackle climate change.
2. Set a new renewables target for 2030 of 30% of UK energy.
3. Back the Independent Committee on Climate Change’s recommendation to set a binding target for low carbon electricity by 2030.
4. Fund the Renewable Heat Incentive for new applications after 2016.
5. Boost the UK’s Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation to reach the 10% renewable energy target for transport by 2020.
6. Reform the EU Emissions Trading Scheme to ensure the market takes account of all sectors’ polluting cost of carbon emissions.

Renewables currently account for 15% of Britain’s power and are set to provide nearly a third by 2020. A recent report from the International Energy Agency revealed that wind, solar and hydro energy grew at its fastest ever pace last year, equating to almost 22% of global power generation.

The date of the next general election has been set as 7 May 2015.

Luke Nicholls

RWE Generation is planning to close three power plants in Germany with a total capacity of 1,000MW, amid declining demand for conventional energy.

The company is considering closing the 110MW Goldenbergwerk lignite power plant in Hürth in the third quarter of 2015, and Unit C of the 285MW Westfalen hard coal power plant in Hamm in early 2016.

The part of Unit K fuelled by hard coal in the 610MW Gersteinwerk plant will be shut down in the first quarter of 2017.

The shutting down of the power plants will affect 180 of the 640 jobs at the three stations.

RWE Generation CEO Peter Terium said: “Conventional power generation is losing ground – not just at RWE.

“Figures from the Federal Network Agency indicate that, up to 2018, more secured power station capacity will have to be taken offline than is added through capital investment.

“This does not bode well for security of supply, to which wind and solar can make little contribution.

“With a capacity market that is non-discriminatory and open to all technologies, Germany could create an economically feasible basis to continue to operate indispensable generation facilities – and thus supplement the expansion of renewable energy.”

The company will terminate supply contracts for approximately 470MW by the end of this year.

RWE had earlier decommissioned Didcot A and Tilbury power stations in the UK and reduced operating hours of the gas-fired power plants in Continental Europe. This has reduced the company’s electricity generation in the first half by 11%.

Siemens Energy has been awarded a contract by Vattenfall for wind turbines and servicing for the Sandbank offshore wind farm in Germany.

Under the contract, Siemens will supply 72 Model SWT-4.0-130 wind turbines and will also perform maintenance services on the Sandbank installations for an initial period of five years.

The project is being built 90km west of the island of Sylt in water depths between 25m and 37m, within the exclusive economic zone off the German North Sea coast.

A pioneering service plan will generate synergy from its close vicinity to the DanTysk offshore wind farm, utilising joint operations to drive down the maintenance costs of both projects.

Service operations will focus on a service operation vessel (SOV) specially designed for these deployments.

Following project commissioning, this specialised ship, fitted with living accommodations for technicians and a workshop equipped with spare parts, will take up a position between the two wind farms.

Located 20km away from the Sandbank offshore wind farm, the DanTysk wind farm is in an advanced stage of construction and is equipped with Siemens wind turbines of the G4 product platform.

Siemens claims that the SWT-4.0-130 wind turbines ordered for the project represent the latest generation of the Siemens G4 platform wind turbines.

Construction work is scheduled to commence in 2015 and commissioning will take place at the end of 2016.

Siemens Energy’s Wind Power Division CEO Markus Tacke said: “We are very pleased to be joining forces and pooling our shared experience again with Vattenfall to implement another major offshore project.

“Thanks to Vattenfall’s expertise in project construction and operation, and Siemens’ innovative technology and service prowess, Sandbank will boldly demonstrate just how far we’ve come in reducing the costs of offshore wind power.”

Vattenfall’s continental / UK region head of the Renewables Business Unit Gunnar Groebler said: “The Sandbank project is further testament to Vattenfall’s strategy of consistently focusing our growth efforts on the expansion of renewable energy.

“We know how to work offshore and we see it as a significant building block in the success of the energy transition in Germany. We are therefore delighted to have Siemens as an experienced partner for the building of the wind turbines.”

Centrica and DONG Energy have scrapped the Celtic Array offshore wind farm planned for the Irish Sea.

The companies have come to a conclusion that the project is economically unviable with current technology and has confirmed challenging ground conditions.

Celtic Array, which is a joint venture between Centrica and DONG Energy, was formed in March 2012 when DONG Energy bought a 50% share in Centrica’s rights to develop wind farms in the Round 3 Irish Sea Zone.

The Crown Estate has agreed to Celtic Array’s decision to cease the zone development agreement for the Irish Sea Zone, allowing the joint venture to stop development activities.

A spokesperson for the project said: “We’re disappointed not to be progressing with our work to develop wind farms in the Irish Sea Zone, however our assessments have shown that ground conditions are such that it’s not viable for us to proceed with the technology that’s available at this stage. We’re extremely grateful for the support that has been shown to us and would like to thank everyone who has taken part in the development of our proposals for the Rhiannon wind farm and other potential projects.”

In January 2010, Centrica Renewable Energy announced an exclusive zone development agreement with The Crown Estate, allowing Centrica to prepare proposals for developing offshore wind farms in an area of the Irish Sea.

The Irish Sea Zone covers an area of 2,200km². The boundaries of the zone are approximately 15km from Anglesey, 20km from the Isle of Man, and more than 40km to the Cumbrian coast.

Head of Offshore Wind, Huub den Rooijen said: “We have confirmed the developers’ assessment of the zone, which shows that challenging ground conditions make this project economically unviable with current technology.

“We understand that this will be disappointing for many but improvements and de-risking of new technologies may one day in the future make it economic to develop in some parts of the area.

“Whilst we have no plans to re-offer the zone to the market, to improve the understanding of the complex geology in this region we intend to make available the wealth of data from Celtic Array’s activity through our Marine Data Exchange in due course.”

Norwegian state-owned electricity firm Statkraft has signed an agreement to sell a 49% interest in its UK onshore wind power portfolio to Gingko Tree Investment.

Under the agreement, Statkraft will sell its three operating wind farms, including Alltwalis in Wales and Baillie and Berry Burn in Scotland, with a total capacity of 142.2MW.

Upon completion of transaction, Statkraft will continue to manage and operate the wind farms, including the provision of operation and maintenance services, and provide market access for the power and renewable certificates generated.

Operational since 2009, the 23MW Alltwalis wind farm features ten turbines and is located north of Carmarthen in Wales while the 52.5MW Baillie wind farm, operational since 2013, is situated near Thurso, North Scotland.

Located near Inverness in the north of Scotland, the 66.7MW Berry Burn wind farm started operations in 2014.

The wind farms, Baillie and Berry Burn, feature 21 and 29 turbines respectively.

Statkraft executive vice-president Jon Brandsar said: “Statkraft is Europe’s leader in renewable energy and a long term investor in the UK renewables sector.

“We have firm growth ambitions in both onshore and offshore wind power. This agreement enables further growth through project development while at the same time maintaining our industrial role.”

The three projects will be placed under a new holding company Wind UK Invest, 51% owned by Statkraft, with the remaining 49% stake held by Gingko.

Yingli Green Energy International, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Yingli Green Energy Holding Company, has signed a collaboration agreement with AMB Energia Wytwarzanie (AMB Energia), a subsidiary of AMB Energia, for the development of 30MW of solar power projects in Poland.

As part of the agreement, AMB Energia as a local partner will fully develop the projects, while Yingli will provide its support throughout all project stages.

The two companies are planning to sell the turn-key projects to investors.

Yingli Green Energy International head of project business Manuel Seiffe said, “In this strategic alliance, the partners will jointly work on co-developing a diversified project portfolio to be ready for inclusion into the auction system in 2015.

“As a leading developer in Poland, AMB Energia will engage in all stages of the development phases of the solar PV projects. This partnership will furthermore enhance our strong position in the project business as well as in the Polish market.”

AMB Energia CEO Przemyslaw Pieta said, “It is a great honor to cooperate with the world’s leading PV manufacturer on the development, implementation and commissioning of projects. We believe that the investment in a pipeline of early-stage project opportunities will bear fruit as early as in 2015.”

The auctions will be conducted separately for planned renewable installations below and above 1MW with only ready-to-build projects allowed to participate.