The world’s largest offshore wind energy turbine is under development by Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy SA. The SG 14-222 DD offshore direct drive wind turbine is expected to enter the prototype phase in 2021 and The new 14 MW offshore wind turbine. Source: Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energybe commercially available in 2024.

The 14 MW capacity is sufficient to power approximately 18,000 average European households. The machine features a rotor diameter of 222 m, which gives the new design the size title recently held by the 220 m Haliade-X turbine with 12 MW capacity developed by General Electric Co. Bigger does not always translate into heavier, as the new Siemens Gamesa unit has a low nacelle weight of 500 metric tons, enabling deployment of an optimized tower and foundation substructure compared to a heavier nacelle. Reduced material use and transportation burdens deliver lower costs per turbine.

Turbine output can be ramped up to 15 MW with the company’s Power Boost function. The 222-The 108 m-long Siemens Gamesa B108 blades provide a swept area of 39,000 m² in a turbine reported to avoid 1.4 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions relative to coal-fired power generation during a 25-year service life.