DNV, the independent energy expert and assurance provider, has started a new joint industry project (JIP) to increase certainty in the design process for wind farms challenged by earthquakes. The so called ACE2 JIP is a follow-up project of ‘Alleviating Cyclone and Earthquake Challenges’ (ACE) JIP and will deeply investigate issues related to earthquakes which was not conducted in the first project. Special topics that will be addressed in the ACE2 JIP are geotechnical aspects, such as damping and liquefaction, jack-up installation vessels, details of seismic load analysis, and specific Taiwanese and Japanese needs. The results will be used to update the recommended practice DNV-RP-0585 Seismic design for wind power plants with the most recent customer feedback and state-of-the art knowledge.
“When we look at the predictions for installed offshore wind capacity world-wide, we expect that Europe will be surpassed by Asia in the 2030s and North America in the 2040s,” explained Kim Sandgaard-Mørk, Executive Vice President for Re-newables Certification at DNV. “Especially in Asia and the US wind turbines and offshore substations, need to be designed to meet challenging conditions like earthquakes. This collaborative effort by the industry will increase the financial robustness of future wind farms in earthquake zones.”
Marcus Klose, Head of Section Steel Structures at DNV, added: “We have just kicked off the project and it is great to have world-class experts gathered around the table to tackle one common industry challenge. It seems that one of our focus areas will be on the conditions in Japan. Japan has the sixth longest coastline in the world with ambitious government targets to install 10 GW of offshore wind by 2030. Therefore typhoons, earthquakes and tsunami risks should be given special attention in the project design life cycle. I am happy that we could attract so many relevant players from Japan. The results will help to accelerate discussions and project decisions in all relevant markets.”
Companies that joined DNV in the kick-off meeting are CDEE, Equinor, Jan de Null, Kajima, Obayashi, Ørsted, Penta-Ocean, Shell, Shimizu, Siemens Gamesa, Taisei, Van Oord, and Vestas.
For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.
Energy Global's Spring 2023 issue
The Spring 2023 issue of Energy Global hosts an array of technical articles focusing on offshore wind, solar technology, energy storage, green hydrogen, waste-to-energy, and more. This issue also features a regional report on commodity challenges facing Asia’s energy transition.