GE Vernova shares fall after turbine blade failure at UK offshore wind farm

The incident was reported at the Dogger Bank A project, located more than 130 km off the northeast coast of England, according to a statement from project managers. GE Vernova said no injuries had been reported and it was investigating the turbine blade failure, without providing further details.

The company faced a similar incident at its wind farm in May, which was blamed on faulty installation. That was followed in July by an incident at its Vineyard Wind offshore project near the Massachusetts coast when a turbine blade manufactured by the company broke, sending fiberglass fragments into the water and washing up on nearby beaches.

“The question going forward will be whether this is a one-off installation issue or a manufacturing defect in the Haliade-X blades, similar to the Vineyard Wind project failure last month. The latter could have more long-term implications,” said Raymond James analyst Graham Price.

GE Vernova, which became a standalone company in April after General Electric split into three parts, is worth $1.5 billion, according to LSEG data.

Equinor terminates Vietnam offshore wind power plan, closes Hanoi office

Equinor has abandoned plans to invest in Vietnam’s offshore wind sector and will close its Hanoi office, Reuters reported on Friday, marking the first time the company has closed an international office focused on offshore wind development.

“The offshore wind sector has faced significant headwinds in recent times and we need to be rigorous in our approach,” a company spokesperson told Reuters.

Equinor’s withdrawal would be a setback for Vietnam’s green energy ambitions, after European wind giant Orsted announced last year that it would halt plans to invest in large offshore wind farms there.

Vietnam has attracted interest in its renewable energy plans because of its strong winds in shallow waters near densely populated coastal areas, but “delays in regulatory reform” are said to have prompted some potential investors to reconsider their plans.

The wind power industry is also considered sensitive by Vietnamese authorities as projects will be developed in the East Sea.

Wind power – Germany’s leading clean energy source – will see slower growth in 2024

Wind power output in Germany is expected to grow by just 1% in 2024, its slowest growth rate in three years, as low wind speeds coupled with a slowdown in net generation capacity construction slow progress in Germany’s top power source.

Wind power is Germany’s biggest source of electricity. In 2024, fossil fuel-fired electricity production in Europe’s largest economy fell to its lowest level in more than a decade. Wind farms overtook coal-fired power plants as Germany’s main source of electricity for the first time in 2023, and wind power remains Germany’s main source of electricity to date.

Wind power accounted for about 28% of Germany’s utility-scale electricity generation in the first seven months of 2024, up from about 27% in all of 2023 and ahead of coal’s 19.5% and solar’s 17.5% so far this year, according to data from energy research group Ember.

In July 2024, total wind farm output fell to its lowest level in more than a year due to low wind speeds, which drop sharply every summer due to relatively static conditions at the turbine level during the hottest part of the year.

Wind power generation levels are expected to recover from September onwards as weather conditions change and wind speeds increase, which will allow wind farms to further expand their overall electricity generation share by the end of 2024.

However, LSEG’s forecast suggests that total wind power generation from September onwards could fall below year-ago levels, leading to a 12% drop in net power generation in the final quarter compared to the same period in 2023.

LSEG’s latest wind power forecast shows that German wind power output will reach 13,438 megawatt hours (MWh) in September, marking an increase of 4,200 MWh or 46% compared to the total electricity output in September 2023.

However, LSEG’s forecast for electricity output in the remaining months of the year looks set to fall steadily below last year’s total, averaging almost 12% in the final quarter of the year.

Slow growth in the country’s main power source could force utilities to increase fossil fuel generation as late as 2024, especially if industrial electricity use increases just as demand for household and commercial heating increases in winter./.