Enova funds offshore wind turbine

The Norwegian firm Enova is to provide the Bergen-based company Sway with £14.8m funding to help it develop a prototype of an offshore 10MW wind turbine.

The funding will contribute to the costs of constructing the turbine in Øygarden in Hordaland County, where it will be tested on land over the next two years.

Once built, the turbine will be the world’s largest of its kind - with a rotor diameter of 145m.

Sway developed the concept for the turbine with the Norwegian technology firm Smartmotor, with a view towards reducing the number of moving parts in the turbine, as well as its weight.

The companies claim that the gearless turbine could result in higher energy generation for offshore wind farms, as well as lowering operating costs.