Gemini is a 600

megawatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...

(MW)

offshore wind farm Offshore wind power or offshore wind energy is the generation of electricity through wind farms in bodies of water, usually at sea. There are higher wind speeds offshore than on land, so offshore farms generate more electricity per amount of c ...

off the coast of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Construction started in 2015 with final commissioning in 2017. At the time of completion it was the second largest offshore wind farm on Earth after the London Array. The wind farm consists of two parts. The first part with 75 turbines is located north of

Ameland Ameland (; West Frisian: It Amelân) is a municipality and one of the West Frisian Islands off the north coast of the Netherlands. It consists mostly of sand dunes. It is the third major island of the West Frisians. It neighbours islands Ter ...

. The second part also with 75 turbines is located 55 kilometres north of Schiermonnikoog. The 150 wind turbines are Siemens SWT-4.0, each with a capacity of 4 megawatts.Gemini
''4C'' The wind farm has been developed by a consortium led by Northland Power, while

Van Oord Royal Van Oord is a Dutch maritime contracting company that specializes in dredging, land reclamation and constructing man made islands. Royal Van Oord has undertaken many projects throughout the world, including land reclamation, dredging and beac ...

is the main contractor. Initially it was expected that the wind farm would be ready in the fourth quarter of 2015, but the start of construction was delayed until 2015. Electricity production started in February 2016 when the first turbine was connected to the grid. In the first week of December 2016, all 150 turbines began producing power, and the project was fully commissioned in May 2017. The total construction cost of the Gemini project is estimated at around 2.8 billion euros,NRC Handelsbla
Nieuw windmolenpark in Noordzee ter waarde van 2,8 miljard euro, 30 januari 2014
, accessed 8 February 2015 and subsidies will be 3.6 billion euros. Gemini has licences to operate the wind farm for 20 years. After this period, the wind farm and everything that has been introduced onto the seabed must be removed. A bank security of 40 million euros has been made available for this. The first offshore service vessel with

inverted bow In ship design, an inverted bow (occasionally also referred to as ''reverse bow'') is a ship's or large boat's bow whose farthest forward point is not at the top. The result may somewhat resemble a submarine's bow. Inverted bows maximize the ...

and X-Stern was launched by

Ulstein Group Ulstein Group is a group of companies that focus on various marine-related industries, but is mainly known for its shipbuilding and ship design activities. The largest unit is ''Ulstein Verft AS''. The company's head office and primary operations ...

in April 2016 to service Gemini, housing 40 workers.

References

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External links

*https://geminiwindpark.nl, official site
Gemini Wind Farm
Facebook page (partly Dutch) Offshore wind farms in the North Sea Wind farms in the Netherlands Energy infrastructure completed in 2017 2017 establishments in the Netherlands

See also

References

External links