The latest writer to notice this posted an article at The New Republic, “How Germany Phased Out Nuclear Power, Only to be Mugged By Reality.”

“Yet in bowing to the country’s strong anti-nuclear movement, Germany appears to have suddenly gone off track: Within the last year the country has gone from a net exporter of energy to a net importer, and the carbon intensity of the energy it purchases has risen as well. Now, with its energy politics in turmoil, Germany is serving as a very different sort of model for environmentalists: how not to go green.”

The article then lists several specific lessons learned from Germany’s energy choices, with one being that ending nuclear energy did not spur more renewable use in Germany thus far:

Indeed, Laszlo Varro, the head of the gas, coal, and power markets division at the International Energy Agency, told me the end of nuclear power ultimately won’t have a discernible impact on renewable generation. That’s because the main obstacle to renewable development isn’t competition from nuclear power, but the challenge of transmission—how to bring electricity from offshore wind farms in northern Germany to the factories in the south. The nuclear phaseout, Varro argues, will only exacerbate this challenge by removing nuclear plants from southern Germany and increasing the north-south energy imbalance.

And since this is the case, by definition, less nuclear power actually results in more dirty fossil fuel use and more greenhouse gas production:

None of this means that Germany has necessarily fallen off course in meeting its ambitious renewable energy targets (the 2050 goal involves many factors, and it’s too soon to judge the ongoing progress with any certainty). But the country’s chances of meeting its emissions goals will almost certainly suffer. That’s because replacing low-emissions nuclear power with wind or solar doesn’t actually reduce emissions—and replacing it with coal and gas only worsens the situation. “Reaching the carbon dioxide emissions target will be more difficult and more expensive after the moratorium,” Varro predicts.

Thus far the effort has also made Germany markedly less energy independent as a nation:

Meanwhile, the biggest financial winner from Germany’s nuclear moratorium, Varro says, is nuclear power outside Germany. Since March, Germany has imported considerably more electricity from neighboring countries like France that rely on nuclear power sources. It’s also turned to power from coal-fired plants in Poland and the Czech Republic.

The author then closes with a long view perspective: Germany may be a gigantic experiment, showing how policy and energy choices impact a large industrial country, and that “the world’s environmentalists have their eyes on Germany. It’s just that the example the country is setting might not be the one he intended.”

Many other experts from around the world are seeing this same thing:

To be sure, as a laboratory for an energy experiment of this magnitude, Germany does have some advantages. It’s a highly industrialized country with a substantial investment in renewable energy sources and a history of beating expectations…. But many energy experts are more skeptical. In a survey this month of experts in 21 countries by the London-based World Energy Council, none of the respondents said they expected Germany to meet all of its stated energy goals, and more than three-quarters predicted a weakening of the Germany economy over the coming decade as a result of the nuclear phaseout. “It’s really a catastrophe,” Kleinknecht told me.

This is a must read article, you can find the whole work here.

Though well established and growing fast in Europe, offshore wind power has yet to get off the ground – or in the water – in the US. That’s despite the tremendous potential offshore wind holds in terms of supplying vast amounts of clean, renewable electricity to highly populated areas all along the US East, West, Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes’ coasts.

Pike Research forecasts that investment in US offshore wind power will rise steeply over the next six years, with revenue reaching $104 billion by 2017. That’s a 56% constant annual growth rate (CAGR). They could reach as high as $130.5 billion under different assumptions incorporated in a “more aggressive scenario,” according to Pike Research’s “Offshore Wind Power” report.
Source: Clean Technica

The blog post continues, comparing the cost and benefit of offshore wind to other energy sources and concludes that “the US populace would continue to be ill-served if their government representatives do not establish fair, equitable support and incentives for developing a largely homegrown industry with such economic, social and environmental benefits and advantages.”

The full report from Pike Research is here.

Then there was also this from the Baltimore Sun, noting how Maryland is potentially a new venue for offshore wind, and is looking at exactly the type of energy questions for their power needs:

Advocates of developing offshore wind power have come to Baltimore this week with optimism that they’re creeping closer to putting the first turbines off the Atlantic coast, but worried that Washington could pull the plug on the fledgling industry just as it gets started.Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar are scheduled to open a three-day conference put on by the American Wind Energy Association.

The future of offshore wind in Maryland may ride on what happens in the next several months, as lawmakers and O’Malley aides chew over whether to ask ratepayers to subsidize offshore turbines off Ocean City or off neighboring states. Lawmakers balked at the idea last winter, tabling it for furrther study. Supporters released a pair of polls this week suggesting that large majorities of Marylanders favor offshore wind and would even be willing to pay more ($2 a month, even) to get it going.

You can read the entire story on this here.

During the recent RETECH conference in Washington, D.C., I was privileged to host offshore wind industry leaders in a robust and detailed roundtable discussion addressing the latest issues and challenges of offshore wind in the United States.

By including a range of international and domestic offshore wind perspectives, including developers, financiers, industry agencies, state government, turbine manufacturers, and consultants, the group’s discussion explored and brainstormed unique concepts for structuring effective business models and policy.

The experts’ roundtable discussion included:

• Potential impact to loan guarantee programs from recent developments and the potential expiration of the Investment Tax Credit (ITC)
• Investment Tax Credit vs. Production Tax Credit – which better serves offshore wind
• Analysis of the structure of the French offshore wind tender, requiring Developers to create full-wrap consortia to tangibly calculate economic benefits in their bid
• Status assessment of the proposed Maryland legislation – MEA serving as an informational portal for the legislature, summer session winding down, results and next steps to be determined
• How to engage utilities, address balance sheet impacts of PPAs, design innovative funding mechanisms, and address the true costs of energy with a comparative net benefits test

Following the discussion, we all came away with new ideas and a better understanding of this fledgling industry’s opportunity and potential.

Through hosting this event and future discussions, AREVA uses its successful international offshore wind project experience to help advance the industry here in the United States.

Three steps to build a wind farm: Towers in the sea

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 4

Published by BBC.co.uk http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14412189

Take a closer look at renewable wind energy through the BBC’s science correspondent David Shukman’s ‘three step guide to the challenges, costs and construction of an offshore wind farm‘.

AREVA also plays a major role in offshore wind through the design, manufacture, assembly and commissioning of high-power wind turbines specially adapted for marine use, notably the M5000. In the summer of 2009, AREVA installed the first six of these M5000 turbines as part of the Alpha Ventus Project in the North Sea.

Click here to watch the video.

Find out how AREVA is helping utilities to make offshore wind projects successful.

Learn more about AREVA’s M5000 wind turbine. It is the first 5 megawatt turbine made specifically for offshore wind farms and is designed to withstand the severe conditions of the marine environment.

You can also watch a video of the installation of these powerful turbines off the German coast in the North Sea.

As Germany begins its trek toward shutting down its nuclear plants by 2022, it has to answer several questions about what effect this will have on the nation’s energy and environmental outlook. Some opponents to nuclear energy have stated that Germany’s plants, which until recently produced 24 percent of its electricity, will be picked up by expanding renewables. But, at least in the short term, much of this shortfall will be met by building new fossil fuel-fired plants.

In a recent piece, Guardian columnist George Monbiot wrote:

Germany’s promise to ditch nuclear power will produce an extra 40 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. In June Angela Merkel announced a possible doubling of the capacity of the coal and gas plants Germany will build in the next 10 years. Already Germany has been burning brown coal, one of the most polluting fuels on earth, to make up the shortfall.

In fact, the German chancellor has called for construction of 20 new fossil plants to replace the 17 nuclear plants until additional renewable capacity is available. According to Der Spiegel, a portion of funds originally directed for investment in renewables “has now been earmarked to subsidize the construction of new coal-fired power plants.”

Part of Germany’s solution will be to replace the electricity supplied by nuclear energy with renewable generation. We applaud the intent to build more renewable generation – AREVA has built six offshore wind turbines off the German coast and, with a production facility in Bremerhaven, working to developing many more. As these renewable sources cannot supply all of the power yet, the German energy demand will have to be supplemented through coal and natural gas. This increased dependence, mostly imported from Russia, has other drawbacks besides producing more greenhouse gas emissions.

Some recent articles have highlighted how Russian industry is positioning to help Germany with its transition away from nuclear energy, including the Voice of Russia. Last week an article plainly titled “Germany to renounce nuclear energy, Gazprom is ready to help,” detailed the new partnership between Gazprom and German utility RWE to build coal and gas fired plants in the country.

Blogger Rod Adams has written an interesting post on the Energy Collective examining Russia’s stake in the German nuclear phaseout.

Other analyses have pointed out that even if Germany meets its objective to phase out nuclear energy, it will not meet the supply the nuclear plants had provided with renewables. According to an insightful post from the Breakthrough Institute:

To fully replace nuclear power with renewable energy, the country would have to scale renewable energy to provide over 42.4% of the country’s projected 2020 electricity demand, a substantial increase from the 17% of electricity demand renewable energy provided in 2010, and far greater than the country’s goal of 35% of electricity demand in 2020. In terms of non-hydro renewables, that’s an increase of 2.6 times today’s levels.

The German people have the right to choose their energy sources, including deciding against nuclear energy. But this is not necessarily the trend. Many other countries understand the constant, low-carbon energy generated by nuclear plants and are moving forward aggressively with new nuclear plants, including China, which now has some 25 plants under construction, and India and the United Kingdom.

“Yet in the United States, no offshore wind farms have been built,” Lanard said. That, however, is about to change … In 2010, eight offshore wind developers bid to lease land on the outer continental shelf [OCS] off the coast of Maryland … Ten offshore wind developers bid in the leasing process for federal waters off Massachusetts and eleven put in bids for the OCS off New Jersey.”

The article also suggests the offshore wind industry is at a key tipping point:

It looks very much like the U.S. offshore wind industry is about to achieve the scale it needs to boom. “Economies of scale can be achieved for offshore wind,” Lanard said, because they are ready to make a technological leap. Several offshore wind developers have reported that they plan to propose wind farms scaled at 1,100 megawatts each.” And, Lanard said, “The standard going forward will be five-, six- and seven-megawatt turbines.”

From AREVA’s perspective as a 5 MW offshore wind turbine manufacturer, the article is definitely worth checking out, do read the whole thing.

Under the terms of the agreement, AREVA will be sole supplier of the turbines that will equip the offshore farms to be developed by Iberdrola Renewables.

“AREVA is fully committed to develop an ambitious wind offshore industry in France bringing its industry leading operational experience in 5MW-class wind turbines. The partnership with Iberdrola, a major renewable global player, is a key step in our European development and offers a tremendous opportunity for our global industrial and economical expansion,” said Anil Srivastava, CEO of AREVA Renewables.

AREVA previously announced it will partner with GDF Suez and construction group Vinci to bid on the other three zones off the coast of France. “AREVA is actively exploring potential opportunities for offshore wind projects on the U.S. East Coast,” said Steven Cuevas, Director of Offshore Wind Business Development at AREVA.

AREVA is a major player in the offshore wind industry. Its successful M5000 turbine won 600 MW of orders confirming the industry’s confidence in the group’s field-proven technology. By the end of 2013, an installed base of over 120 new turbines will be in operation in Europe.

It’s more than just jobs – though thousands of manufacturing jobs per installed gigawatt is a powerful incentive. And it’s more than powering hundreds of thousands of American homes with a carbon-free renewable resource.

In the same way ripples expand across a still pond well after tossing in a rock, developing and supporting gigawatts of offshore wind power with a regional manufacturing hub generates an expanding ripple of educated workforces, advancing technology, and investments in future-facing industries.

In an interesting twist completely appropriate for the novel workings of the developing U.S. offshore wind industry, the ripples are spreading before even a single offshore turbine foundation hits the water.

Education
The University of Delaware’s Center for Carbon-free Power Integration Offshore Wind section has been sparking students’ creativity and research since 2005.

Likewise, the University of Maine will start offering a Master of Science in Renewable Energy and the Environment in 2011, and an undergraduate minor in Deepwater Wind Energy. It already has people and Op-Eds talking:

Now, Maine stands positioned to become a national leader in offshore wind, in part because of the state’s support of the research and development at the University of Maine under the leadership of Professor Habib Dagher, a rare visionary among Maine business leaders.

Institutions like these are not waiting for the policymakers to catch up, they’re pushing ahead and educating a ready and capable workforce of skilled researchers, designers, and leaders to explore and define the shape of the new U.S. offshore wind industry.

Advancing Technology
From the business perspective, the visionaries are already looking beyond placing steel in U.S. waters and planning to tap the potential of this unique manufacturing and design capability. Though, the U.S. currently lags far behind European markets, part of the American fabric of business is to recognize and seize opportunities, and then lead development expansion. I’m sure enterprising U.S. companies are starting to understand the market potential experienced by European firms supporting the hundreds-of-million-dollar offshore wind farms going up in the North Sea.

But business is more than just objects, it’s also concepts and contracts. I expect that once the U.S. industry gets a few projects under our collective belt, we’ll continue pushing into the next generation of offshore wind technology. As the U.S. continues advancing the technological edge, the world will again look to American market champions for innovative global leadership.

Step to the Future
Even less clear, but perhaps more important is the idea that investing in offshore wind power is investing in tomorrow’s clean energy technology, and not yesterday’s industrial revolution. As that same editorial in the Seacoastonline.com states about the potential in Maine,

Nearly 1,000 megawatts of wind power is already installed or being permitted on land, and the offshore potential is much greater.

We don’t need to embrace pie-in-the-sky to see that this could not only provide moderate-cost electricity for Maine, but could spawn a major new manufacturing industry employing 5,000 people or more — the first on that scale since the heyday of the paper mills.

Offshore wind power shifts the perspective from a carbon-choking environmental shrug to a positive legacy in the eyes of our young New Energy Generation.

Sure it’s jobs and electricity, but the U.S. offshore wind industry will also power education, innovation, investing and environmental advancements.

Who knew that a gigawatt could be so powerful?

Last week’s announcement of AREVA’s offshore wind partnership in France with GDF Suez and Vinci brings to mind a question:

So, what qualities do you need in a great turbine manufacturer partner to develop a multi-gigawatt offshore wind industry, like in the burgeoning U.S. market?

With the United States targeting offshore wind energy to reach 10 GWs in 2020 and 54 GWs in 2030, developers, manufacturers, suppliers and governments are beginning to coalesce into cooperative relationships and accelerate market development.

In our experience, to be a great turbine manufacturer partner, you need at least these three things: creative cooperation, quality products, and economic catalyst.

• Cooperation: With a 40-turbine offshore wind farm price tag of around $1,000,000,000, you need solid partners and relationships. For example, in addition to the AREVA/GDFSuez/Vinci partnership in France, AREVA successfully achieved the first instance of non-recourse offshore wind farm financing through a consortium of 11 banks supporting the 40-turbine Borkum West II offshore wind farm in Germany’s North Sea. And to gain greater project cost efficiencies, AREVA partnered with BELUGA HOCHTIEF Offshore for a new purpose-built jack-up vessel designed to operate in the harshest weather conditions at greater depth and transport a larger quantity of foundations and turbines at one time.
• Product: Speaking of turbines, the ocean environment is a harsh, remote, salt-corrosive place to locate tight-tolerance gears, sophisticated electronics, and precision-crafted components. To mitigate these risks, you need fewer moving parts, purified interior air, and redundant dynamic monitoring systems. AREVA’s hybrid-drive 5 MW offshore wind turbine includes all three. We constructed it specifically as an offshore wind turbine: Built for the Sea. Made for the Wind. You can’t skimp on quality when your technology sits 30 miles out to sea.
• Catalyst: In our experience establishing a successful facility and expansive supply chain in northern Germany, we’ve seen how an offshore wind manufacturing hub significantly drives economic growth across a wide region. For example in one year in Bremerhaven, our commitment to localized, domestic sourcing of 3,500 components created approximately 1,200 direct jobs.

It’s these qualities that will sustain a business relationship for the duration of a large-scale project. AREVA’s skill in building partnerships, manufacturing quality products, and generating significant economic growth creates the solid foundation and project championship necessary for successfully constructing and commissioning U.S. offshore wind farms.