Constructing wind energy
Eighty four percent of European wind energy capacity has been installed in Germany, Spain and Denmark and wind energy now accounts for four percent of national electricity consumption in Germany, and 18 per cent in Denmark. About 80 per cent of all wind turbines sold worldwide are manufactured by European companies. Wind power has come a long way from the early prototypes and pioneers over the past twenty years. Since those former days, the rotor diameter of the largest turbines has increased from 10 meters to over 100 meters - that is 50 percent larger than a jumbo jet's wingspan. This, together with other leaps in technology, has resulted in the output of the biggest commercially available wind turbine increasing 200-fold.
In Poland, no construction company has experience installing such turbines, despite the fact that the construction process is not very complicated. However, wind operators tend to use construction companies that have a long track record of cooperating with them, and that is the rule followed by Stencor Inc. (a wind energy operator) from Dublin that is seeking to place its turbines in windy and accessible places in the North of Poland, using a new kind of lightweight design for the supporting towers. As wind energy is one of the most promising types of renewable sources in Europe, this Irish company is aiming to establish its first wind farms outside Ireland and will begin its international expansion in Poland. According to its advisor, the International Advisory Search for Trade & Finance, Stencor Inc.'s project is to be supported under the Fifth Framework program. The company wants to invest around zł.120.5 million (E25 million) in Poland to begin with and is going to use a new compact 1.3 megawatt wind turbine for the first time. Another innovation will be a tower made of fiber-reinforced composites instead of conventional materials such as steel. Although fiber-reinforced composites are more expensive, they have a longer life, lower maintenance costs and are cheaper to transport and erect. For Minder Construction, which works for Stencor Inc., the whole process of putting up the towers with the cables takes about 15 days. For now, Stencor Inc., along with the International Advisory Search for Trade & Finance, would like to conclude its negotiations with the land owners and with the local authorities for the required permits by the end of July this year. According to Steven Haley, Stencor's Director of Strategy, Poland's prospects for the development of wind energy in the next decade are looking good, and his company would like to be among the first foreign entrants on the wind market in this region.
In Poland, no construction company has experience installing such turbines, despite the fact that the construction process is not very complicated. However, wind operators tend to use construction companies that have a long track record of cooperating with them, and that is the rule followed by Stencor Inc. (a wind energy operator) from Dublin that is seeking to place its turbines in windy and accessible places in the North of Poland, using a new kind of lightweight design for the supporting towers. As wind energy is one of the most promising types of renewable sources in Europe, this Irish company is aiming to establish its first wind farms outside Ireland and will begin its international expansion in Poland. According to its advisor, the International Advisory Search for Trade & Finance, Stencor Inc.'s project is to be supported under the Fifth Framework program. The company wants to invest around zł.120.5 million (E25 million) in Poland to begin with and is going to use a new compact 1.3 megawatt wind turbine for the first time. Another innovation will be a tower made of fiber-reinforced composites instead of conventional materials such as steel. Although fiber-reinforced composites are more expensive, they have a longer life, lower maintenance costs and are cheaper to transport and erect. For Minder Construction, which works for Stencor Inc., the whole process of putting up the towers with the cables takes about 15 days. For now, Stencor Inc., along with the International Advisory Search for Trade & Finance, would like to conclude its negotiations with the land owners and with the local authorities for the required permits by the end of July this year. According to Steven Haley, Stencor's Director of Strategy, Poland's prospects for the development of wind energy in the next decade are looking good, and his company would like to be among the first foreign entrants on the wind market in this region.
