Siemens has unveiled the SWT-7.0-154 direct-drive offshore wind turbine, an upgrade to its SWT-6.0-154 model that delivers nearly 10% more energy production.
The company says stronger permanent magnets and generator segments in the permanent magnet generator provide the key to harvesting a higher yield. Additionally, the converter and transformer have been upgraded, in line with the higher electrical output.
The 7 MW model is set to go into series production by 2017, and DONG Energy has already chosen the new turbine for its 330 MW second phase of the Walney Extension Offshore Wind Farm, located off the English west coast in the Irish Sea.
‘The 7 MW turbine is an upgrade of the 6 MW platform, that we are very familiar with and are already installing at both Westermost Rough in the U.K. and at our Gode Wind 1+2 wind farms in Germany," says Mats Vikholm, senior vice president for DONG Energy Wind Power. "We are certain that this improved and bigger turbine will contribute to driving down cost of offshore wind power even further."
Siemens' 6 MW offshore wind turbine will continue to be available for customers under the renamed product platform D7.
