Orsted, a developer, builder and operator of offshore wind farms, and Vestas, a wind energy company, both headquartered in Denmark, have formed a commercial sustainability partnership.
Creating a cost-efficient solution to address the carbon that the manufacture of materials and components used in wind farms emits, Orsted and Vestas will install low-carbon steel towers and, when commercially available, blades made from recycled materials at all future joint offshore wind farms. This collaboration marks an industry-first effort towards net-zero wind farms.
By committing to integrate sustainable procurement not just as a one-off but in all future offshore projects between the two companies, Orsted is creating ongoing demand for Vestas’ innovative low-carbon and circular solutions.
“We at Orsted are very proud to partner with Vestas to integrate and scale cutting-edge decarbonization and circularity solutions to meet future customer demands for net-zero wind farms,” says Mads Nipper, group president and CEO of Orsted.
Adds Henrik Andersen, CEO of Vestas: “This partnership is a leap forward for developing circular wind power projects and sends a powerful message that commercial agreements and collaboration are vital in our urgent fight against the climate crisis.”
This initiative entails that for all joint future offshore wind farms, the two companies will:
- Procure and install a minimum of 25% low-carbon steel towers in joint projects. By utilizing scrap steel manufactured with on-site renewable electricity, carbon emissions from heavy steel plates used in towers can be reduced by up to 70%.
- Scale circular-blade recycling technology and procure blades made from recycled materials. Vestas and its partners have pioneered the first solution to break down composite materials in existing and future epoxy-based blades and use the recovered epoxy resin for new blades.
Apart from the commitments on low-carbon steel towers and circular-blade recycling, the companies have also pledged to explore other areas of collaboration within sustainability, including within biodiversity to ensure a build-out of renewable energy in balance with nature.
