North East to build world's biggest turbine

Sep 17 2009 By Adam Jupp, The Journal

20 sites approved for wind farms

THERE are currently nearly 20 sites approved for wind farms to be built off the shores of the UK.

A further 27 locations have been proposed but are still set to be agreed.

Crown Estates, which owns all of the UK’s seabeds, has entered the third stage of the tendering process to determine who will get the contracts to build them.

Currently, offshore farms account for just 1% of the world’s wind capacity but many countries are set to massively expand this area in coming years.

It is predicted Britain will increase its offshore capacity more than 20 times over in the next decade.

Plans to build turbines on Tyneside are seen as ideal due to the fact parts can be floated up the river to industrial sites currently empty since the decline of shipbuilding.

Once they have been built, they can be shipped back down the river and out to where they will be sunk into the sea bed. Meanwhile, parts can also be tested by NAREC, based in Blyth, Northumberland, which is also vying for Government cash to expand its operation.

Many of the proposed and agreed locations are in the North Sea, stretching down the coastline of Scotland to East Anglia.

Offshore farms are huge in comparison to the onshore equivalent. To erect them, piles are first driven into the seabed, while erosion protection, similar to sea defences, is placed at the base to prevent damage to the sea floor.

Often, a section of the turbine will be painted a bright colour to make them visible to ships. Sensors detect the wind direction and turn the head, known as the nacelle, to face into the wind, so that the maximum amount of energy can be collected.