The world’s most powerful wind turbine, GE Renewable Energy’s Haliade-X 12MW (www.ge.com), has arrived at the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult’s Blyth testing facility in Northumberland, ahead of a rigorous testing programme designed to prepare it for years of operation at sea.

The huge nacelle — comparable in size to six double-deck London buses — will undergo full indoor testing as part of a programme replicating real-world operational conditions.

John Lavelle, CEO of GE’s Offshore Wind business, said: “GE’s Haliade-X technology will have an important role to play in helping the UK to achieve its Offshore Wind Sector Deal goal of 30GW by 2030.

Our Haliade-X global testing programme will allow us to put different components under controlled and extreme conditions in a faster way, to adapt our technology in a shortened time, while introducing new features to meet customers’ demands, and reduce the validation time before starting serial production in 2021.”

Andrew Jamieson, ORE Catapult chief executive, said: “Once again, the North East is playing a significant role in the UK offshore wind success story by welcoming another key component of the world’s largest offshore wind turbine to date, following the arrival of the turbine’s 107m blade for testing earlier this year.

"Our objective is to subject the turbine nacelle to an extremely rigorous testing programme designed to make sure it can withstand years of operation at sea.

"Testing these world-leading technologies in the UK cements our position as a global leader in offshore wind and presents unparalleled opportunities for the supply chain to develop new products and services, creating jobs and generating economic benefit.”