GE to test 12 GW wind turbine off UK coast

GE Renewable Energy has signed a five-year agreement with Renewable Energy Catapult, funded by the British government, to test GE’s Haliade-X 12 megawatt (MW) turbine in Blyth, Northumberland.

“This is an important agreement because it will enable us to prove Haliade-X in a faster way by putting it under controlled and extreme conditions,” John Lavelle, president & CEO of GE’s Offshore Wind business said in a statement.

The UK has some 6 GW of installed wind capacity which it is seeking to ramp up four times by 2030. The agreement also includes a 6 million pound ($8.5 million) combined investment from Britain’s Innovate UK and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to install the world’s largest and most powerful grid emulation system at the Catapult’s Blyth center.

The largest wind turbines presently in operation are MHI Vestas' 9 MW machines at Vattenfall's windfarm off the coast of Aberdeen, Scotland.