Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction has completed the installation of an 8MW offshore wind turbine prototype in South Korea.
The turbine has been installed at the Korea Wind Power Demonstration Center, which is located in Baeksu, Yeonggwang, in the province of South Jeolla.
The commissioning process will be initiated at the end of this month, after which international certification for the wind turbine will be obtained and final preparations for commercialisation will be completed in June.
The 8MW offshore wind turbine was developed as an industry-academia-research sector cooperation project led by the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP).
It is the country’s largest homegrown wind turbine so far.
The turbine includes 100-metre long blades and is hosted on a 130 metre tower, reaching a total height of 232.5 metres.
The wind turbine can operate in wind speeds of 11 metres/second with a utilisation rate of 30% or higher even when the average wind speed is 6.5 metres/second.
Doosan Heavy has applied a gearless direct drive-type generator to the 8MW wind turbine, which has the advantage of providing higher structural stability and energy efficiency, owing to the simplified power transmission system, and lower maintenance costs.
CEO of Doosan Heavy’s Power Services Business Group Hongook Park said the company has been working on developing a model that is “specially designed” to suit the conditions of the Korean wind environment, a typhoon-prone region that has an average wind speed that is comparatively lower than Europe.
“By adding this large-capacity 8MW model to our existing models that include the 3MW and 5.5MW wind turbines, we have effectively expanded our product line-up,” he said.
Doosan is working together with local wind power companies and plans to increase the local manufacturing of parts, which is currently in the 70% range to maximise local supply chain opportunities.
Last month the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy had designated the offshore wind farm in Korea’s southwestern region as the country’s first new and renewable energy cluster complex.
In line with the efforts for expansion of offshore wind power, which included construction of the Southwest Demonstration Wind Farm (400MW) in North Jeolla Province, Doosan Heavy has been working on development of the 8MW wind turbine, one that is optimally designed to suit Korea’s wind conditions.