London Array has set a new record for the amount of electricity generated by an offshore wind farm in a single calendar month.
December 2015 saw the site’s 175 turbines generate 369,000 MWh – considerably above target and well above the previous best of 317,000 MWh set last November.
The capacity factor for the world’s largest operational offshore wind farm last December, which saw average wind speeds of 11.9 metres per second (27mph), was 78.9%, with turbine availability above 98%.
The two successive months of production at the site 20km off the Kent coast in the outer Thames Estuary brought net overall output for the year to 2.5TWh.
London Array Limited general manager Jonathan Duffy said: “Above average winds this winter have helped push production higher but that is only part of the story: we have a great team of people who support the operation and maintenance of the wind farm.
“We have pushed very hard over the past year to build on our earlier successes and develop our approach to turbine maintenance and repair. Together with key contractors DONG Energy and Siemens we have focused on operational efficiency and expanding the amount of time our technicians are able to work offshore.”
London Array Limited is owned by a consortium of Eon (30%), DONG Energy (25%) and Masdar (20%) plus Canadian fund manager La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (25%).
Image: London Array (reNews)
London Array smashes output record
New production record for offshore wind farm in single calendar month
By EBS