Glasgow has been identified as the preferred location for Gamesa's marine wind technology center – subject to final agreements on financing – which could see the creation of 130 jobs in Scotland's largest city.
The company is also developing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Scottish Enterprise, the Dundee City Council and Forth Ports PLC to further advance a potential development in Dundee around manufacturing, logistics and operations and maintenance (O&M) activities in the Scottish port. This MOU remains conditional upon the development of offshore wind power projects in the area and the availability of sites for prototype offshore wind turbine generators.
If implemented successfully, Gamesa's offshore plan could represent an investment of 50 million euros in Scotland and create 300 direct jobs in the country. The announcement comes just a few months after Gamesa unveiled its industrial plan for offshore wind power in the U.K., where it plans to invest over 150 million euros through 2014.
In addition to its offshore technology center in Glasgow and a potential industrial, logistics and O&M base in Dundee, Gamesa's offshore wind strategy for the U.K. includes construction of a blade production plant (location is under study) and engaging in offshore logistics from a number of U.K. ports, around which it will locate its wind turbine O&M operations.
Gamesa's offshore wind business headquarters will be based in London, where it will engage in sales, project development, finance and management activities. Gamesa estimates that the construction and development of its offshore wind business in the U.K. will create over 1,000 direct jobs and another 800 indirect jobs at local suppliers.
The company is currently designing and developing two families of offshore turbines based on the technology used in its G10X-4.5 MW turbine system. The first two prototypes of its G11X system, with unit capacity of 5 MW, will be tested in the last quarter of 2012, with pre-series models ready for market entry in 2013.
Gamesa is developing its G11X-5.0MW offshore wind generator in partnership with the Newport News Shipbuilding operations of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, a sector of Northrop Grumman Corp.
SOURCE: Gamesa
