Norway’s Wind Catching Systems (WCS) recently launched a huge array of floating wind turbines for the first time. It is said to produce 5 times the energy of the world’s largest single turbine each year, while reducing costs enough to be immediately competitive in grid prices. . These huge Windcatcher grids will be staggered with multiple small turbines on a floating platform fixed to the bottom of the sea, with a height of more than 1,000 feet (324 meters).

WCS stated that only one of these arrays can provide twice the sweep area of the world’s largest conventional wind turbine-15 MW Vestas V236-and that when large turbines start to tilt their blades to limit production and protect themselves from When damaged, its smaller rotor can perform better at wind speeds of 40 to 43km/h. According to WCS, the overall effect is to increase energy output by 500% every year, and the electricity generated by each array is enough to support the operation of 80,000 European households.

These wind catchers do not use huge individual components, but use small parts that are easier to work with. After installing the floating base, no crane or professional boat is required, most of the rest can be done on the deck, and the grid design facilitates continuous maintenance. WCS stated that the service life of these arrays is 50 years, unlike the 30 years of a single large turbine.

WCS stated that it is ready to provide offshore wind power at grid parity (LCOE, considering the cost of capital) when it debuts, which means an energy level that matches or exceeds the price of the grid (LCOE, considering the cost of capital). In Norway and the United States, the current average price is about US$105 per MWh. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) currently predicts that the average capacity-weighted LCOE price of new offshore wind power assets to be put into production in 2026 will be $115.04 per MWh, and the price in some areas may be less than $100.

So this is still a relatively expensive way to generate electricity, especially when compared to onshore wind and solar energy, but it can save the cost of offshore wind energy. WCS stated that its forecast is based on the initial installation scale, which it believes will become significantly more economical as the scale expands.

It is reported that this company is supported by investment companies North Energy and Ferd, and has also developed this technology in cooperation with offshore wind suppliers Aibel and IFE Institute for Energy Technology. WCS has not released further details about the prototype or its first installation, so although it does have the appearance of legal technology, it seems that people will have to wait a while to prove its claim.Editor/Baohongying、design/zhangtao