Regional renewable power opportunities and transmission grid

Here's that image from John Kerry's presentation this morning. This is a map of renewable power sources and potential sources, and high-voltage regional transmission lines. Click to enlarge:


Maine is a tabula rasa sitting in the middle of all these resources. Improved transmission infrastructure could put us in the middle of things, with cheaper electric rates and cleaner power sources.

Deepwater offshore wind rigs

I have a certain fascination with deepwater offshore oil rigs, so I'm pretty excited about Musial's presentation and his discussion of various offshore, deepwater wind turbine technologies.



Musial didn't mention this in his presentation, but deepwater wind turbine research owes a lot to offshore oil rig technology. In fact, the world's first deepwater wind turbine, the Beatrice demonstration project in Scotland, is being developed by a Scottish oil company adjacent to one of their offshore oil fields. Like an offshore oil rig, the 5 MW turbine will be perched atop a 40 meter stage.



The turbine itself is also huge - compare the turbine blades in the photo above to the vans parked next to it in the upper-right corner. Big turbines that generate a lot of power are necessary to justify the huge capital investment in deepwater construction.

Here's a BBC news article with photos of the turbine floating out to sea.

But, just as deepwater oil rigs are now using floating platforms in deeper water, so offshore wind turbines will someday float on the surface, tethered to the bottom a hundred meters beneath.



Again, an oil company is leading the way in this technology: Norway's Statoil is developing Hywind (pictured), a floating turbine that can live in deep water and withstand punishing weather.