UK Wind & Gas Project: First of Kind

On Feb. 8 Eclipse Energy UK plc (‘Eclipse’) announced that it has been granted consent to construct and operate a unique dual energy scheme, the Ormonde offshore wind farm and to generate and export electricity from the adjacent Ormonde Gas Fields development by the UK Government. This completes the series of principal permissions necessary to construct the world’s first co-development of offshore gas and wind energy, in the East Irish Sea offshore from Lancaster.

When constructed Ormonde is expected to have the ability to provide up to 200MW of electricity from its gas turbines fueled by two natural gas fields and dedicated offshore wind farm of 30 turbines. The Ormonde project will be able to supply the equivalent of three-quarters of Cumbria’s domestic load generating enough electricity to power over 155,000 homes, the equivalent of which 71,000 would be powered by renewable energy, it will also save up to 286,000 tons of CO2 per year. The project anticipates first energy in 2009.

Ormonde Project Facts
	Wind	Natural Gas
Revenue Split	80%	20%
Installed Capacity	108MW	93MW
Generated Electricity	59%	41%

The Ormonde Project is a global first, integrating gas-fired power generation from end-of-life or ‘fallow’ gas fields utilized as a commercial catalyst in order to develop and generate renewable energy from an offshore wind power generation scheme.

Energy Minister Lord Truscott said:

"We are now starting to see a real flow of approvals for energy projects in UK waters. The London Array and Thanet schemes in the Thames Estuary went through in December and the good progress continues in 2007."

Commenting on the license award, Ian Hatton, Managing Director of Eclipse said,

"Eclipse is delighted to have gained consent for the world's 1st hybrid energy generation facility.

"We have combined both North Sea oil and gas experience and business models to provide a commercial catalyst to enable us to harness the energy from offshore natural gas fields and wind power, this is a global first.

"Over the next few years the UK's natural gas reserves will become depleted and we will become increasingly dependent upon imported energy. It is therefore vital that we explore the opportunities for producing energy from renewable sources and that we maximize recovery of the nation's indigenous energy.

"We believe that wind power can play a key role by producing electricity from a clean, free, abundant and inexhaustible resource. We expect Ormonde to be the first of a series of similar projects where offshore wind energy is developed using the hybrid concept. Our project is dominated by wind power but will also generate electricity from two small gas fields, Ormonde North and Ormonde South.

Eclipse Energy Company Limited is a new British independent energy company that recognizes sustainability as a key issue for the future of the UK's offshore energy industry in the 21st Century. The business was founded in February 1999 with the objective of developing, owning and operating low-carbon, sustainable upstream energy projects. The Company has developed an innovative concept for the hybrid production of electricity from offshore natural gas and wind resources. The Company’s first development is the Ormonde Project.

Offshore wind is getting a better start in the UK than in the US, although after years of haggling the Cape Wind project, off Cape Cod, MA in view of the Kennedy compound, now has a better chance of getting approved with a favorable Supreme Court ruling and the departure of Governor Romney.  Eclipse's hybrid concept of combining wind and gas generation overcomes the intermittency of wind power, while utilizing gas from fallow gas fields that otherwise would be uneconomical to operate.

Comments

[karl (I posted in response to this at the budget thread from the 6th)]

Apparently I won't be able to post my longer final windpower note anywhere today but anyone can email me for it. It's about artificailly propping and keeping up mills when newer ones would work better because uthose built prematurely got federally funded and 'protected.'

I did just though study this blog entry and it's accompanying chart better and it is consistent with my post about how lopsided the return on investment is because there getting access to the methane instead of it being sold to the highest bidder year to year. Probably fuel cells will have to pay far more for it from elsewhere during it's tenure, or premature fallow to emptiness gained then they pay to burn it there/ would of paid in time appreciated dollars even allowing for risk by any measure..... Shame that will be. Ouch. Despite that cells will roll out, just later, just on a smaller scale, justu after too many more innocents have been burnt alive to serve dim bush.

[karl ("no exposure to the volatility of natural gas prices")]

Dam I'm right above so must write again!

"The Ormonde Project demonstrates improved economics and investment returns through:
• Diversification of income and cash-flow from two sources of power

>>>>> with no exposure to the volatility of natural gas prices

"

That can't be in the public interest. I believe the (last year abouts) congressional testimony about how wasteful it is to burn gas instead of convert it to water and electric potential except that the infrastructure to do so shouldnt' be on a car to grid goldbergian exploitation of heavy wheel addicts.

Developing that technologyin fact hinders large scale site installedd cell technology that only might permeat off shore to shallow/fallow fields if and only if they have not been burnt dry on a gimmick of some pretty propellers getting packaged in as they seem to admit mainly props.

It's on money that monetary decisions should be based. NOt this or that technologyt to suit bias or otherwise faulilly irrational astghetic tastes.

Further the statement
"
Our project is dominated by wind power but will also generate electricity from

>>two small gas

fields, Ormonde North and Ormonde South."

is more evidence of mischief. The table discloses that the fields ARE NOT SMALL IN COMPARISON TO THE AMOUNT OF PROFITS OR ENERGY 'produced.'

Isn't that the context in which they are described in the excerpt though? Isn't it?

http://www.seapower-generation.co.uk/who.htm

[karl ("2 Dependent on the way in which the gas turbines are operated")]

It is true that volatile prices have clean methane generators standing idle while cheaper fueled dirty ancient plants run continously. I personally have to suffer the choice of cheap electricity off peak, knowing it's coal, or spend a punitive rate to use clean methane, so I welcomed the news that one can do betther then burn it however cleanly.

They seem to expect us to believe that when the wind is blowing they won't burn the gas, even though they don't have to pay the market price for it. Since the price isn't volatile, just what determines whether they burn it now, or leave it be? The footnote is insufficient even if read. But mainly I don't understand the bit about revenue. It means the windpower is sold for more money right? It's just opposite to the way it should be. Clean fuels should be subsidized on purchase perhaps, but not more then convential is tariffed. The burning of methane even bought up while still in the ground stocks should be subject to regulation. Although I can't take the time to confirm this, they appear to be buying the right to engage in such combustion when the rest of us might be barred from doing so. It's not wind but fuel cells that need help getting paid for so as to suck up that which would otherwise essentially be flared even if at '100' percent efficient liek the resistive heaters so widely, obscenely, corruptly, irrationally, and likely now from wind powered!

[amazingdrx]

The Prairie National Park and windfarm would have a similar hybrid aspect.

http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog/_archives/2006/2/9/1752958.html

Prairie grasses could be mowed and converted to biogas to backup the wind machine output. The grasses could be cut in strips, about once every three years. Sequestration would remain the same as natural prairie since organic fertilizer from the boigas digestor could be returned to the soil.

Mowing replaces the effect of fire in maintaining the prairie ecosystem.

[Charles S]

While Cape Cod overshadows other news about offshore wind turbines, Wired.com published an article titled "Inherit the Wind" which talks about other US regions are quietly approving offshore projects.