Eneco opens its largest onshore wind farm in the Netherlands
Total power output Delfzijl Noord wind farm supplied to new Google data centre
As part of the festive opening of Delfzijl Noord wind farm earlier today, artist Maya Wildevuur and 40 pupils of primary schools De Munte and De Woldrakkers decorated the base of one of the 19 new wind turbines. The children also attended a lesson on wind energy and were allowed to take a look around inside the base of a wind turbine.
Delfzijl Noord wind farm has a total capacity of 62.7 MegaWatt and consists of 19 wind turbines. These are located on grounds managed by Groningen Seaports: on the Pier van Oterdum (5 turbines) and on the long and narrow Schermdijk dike (14 turbines), which is surrounded by water. The turbines (type N100/3300 with a capacity of 3.3 Megawatt each) were supplied by the German manufacturer Nordex and have a mast height of 100 metres and a blade length of 50 metres. Eneco invested more than 90 million euros in this project.
Google
The wind farm will produce 175 GWh of green power per year, which corresponds to the annual energy consumption of around 55,000 households. Starting at the beginning of next year, Google shall purchase the total power output for a period of 10 years, to provide green energy for the data centre that is currently being constructed at the port of Eemshaven. The agreement to this effect is in line with Eneco’s strategy to match the production of wind energy with the demand for green power from large customers.
Breeding area
The project includes the creation of a breeding area, a small piece of land on the Pier van Oterdum that has been adapted to attract breeding birds. For the preparation and management of this area Eneco worked together with local nature groups, including Avifauna and the Groninger Landschap Association. The 2400m2 breeding area consists of sand and clay with a top layer of gravel and shells. In the first breeding season in 2014, 50 breeding pairs of common terns and black-headed gull were spotted; this year, this number had increased to 350 pairs.
