GE Renewable Energy (www.gerenewableenergy.com) confirms that it made another shipment of nacelles to Merkur’s offshore wind-farm logistical hub in Eemshaven (the Netherlands) at the end of last month.

This means that the hub has received 24 nacelles and 24 blades, plus several other major tower components and transition pieces.

With all these parts in place, local teams will undertake some pre-assembly work while getting prepared for the installation phase, which is set to begin in mid-February.

The offshore turbines have three main components — towers, nacelles and blades — that are manufactured in different locations and then shipped to Eemshaven, where they are prepared for the eventual installation at sea.

The towers are manufactured in Germany and China, the nacelles are produced in Saint-Nazaire (France), and the blades are made in Castellon (Spain) by LM Wind Power.

Nacelles, blades and tower pieces will continue to be shipped to Eemshaven until mid-summer.

Installation of the full complement of 66 GE Haliade 150-6MW turbines is expected to be completed by the end of September.

The Merkur wind farm is located about 35km north of the island of Borkum (Germany) in the North Sea, and it will generate about 1,750GWhr annually — enough to power around 500,000 homes.

When completed, it will be one of Germany’s largest offshore wind farms.

The Haliade 150-6MW turbine was specifically designed for a marine environment.

Thanks to its 150m rotor diameter (each blade is 73.5m long), its output is 15% higher than other offshore turbines of the same generation.