German utility RWE is set to use GreenerTower from Spanish wind turbine maker Siemens Gamesa for its 1GW Thor offshore wind farm off the coast of Denmark.
GreenerTower is described as a new wind turbine tower made from sustainable steel.
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The towers consist of almost 80% steel plates. The plates’ manufacturing process is 63% less carbon-intensive than that of conventional steel. A maximum of 0.7 tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions is permitted per tonne, while the steel’s quality and properties are maintained.
The electric furnaces will be fed with green electricity from renewable sources as a means of decarbonising the steel-making process.
Other measures include the use of scrap steel to substitute for iron ore and reductions in the energy intensity of the entire process.
Half of the 72 wind turbines to power the Thor wind farm will incorporate these lower-carbon steel towers.
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By GlobalDataOffshore installation of the towers is expected to take place in 2026.
RWE Offshore Wind CEO Sven Utermöhlen stated: “Offshore wind already has one of the lowest life-cycle carbon footprints of power generation technologies. However, tower production accounts for around one-third of all wind turbine-related CO2 emissions. So using greener steel is a significant step towards producing even more sustainable wind power. At RWE, we are fully committed to working towards circularity and net-zero emissions.
“We are already testing the world’s first recyclable wind turbine blades by Siemens Gamesa under real-life conditions. By piloting the GreenerTower at our Thor offshore wind farm, RWE is now once again taking the lead by helping to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of wind turbines.”
Thor offshore wind farm will be located 22km from Thorsminde on the west coast of Jutland in the Danish North Sea.
Anticipated to be fully operational by the end of 2027, it will generate enough clean electricity to power more than a million Danish households.
Siemens also secured an order for the supply of 850MW of solar inverters to Lightsource bp for its solar projects in the US.
The Volume Frame Agreement has an option to add another 200MW over the next two years.
