The Danish government is expected to propose new test sites for large wind turbines before Christmas, according to Danish media.
The government will thus be following up on the work that took place in 2011, when the test centre comprising seven sites was established in Østerild. Since then, all t he sites have been sold or rented, and the same goes for five test sites that exist at Høvsøre.
Technical University of Denmark (DTU) currently operates the existing test centres and has helped to clarify the possibilities for expanding them. Danish Business and Growth Ministry, led by Minister Troels Lund Poulsen, has received input on the expansion from both DTU and the Danish Wind Industry Association.
In January , Danish wind industry’s strategic RD&D partnership, Megavind, called for additional locations and facilities for testing wind energy technology and entered a dialogue with the Danish government to discuss possibilities to find additional prototype test sites.
According to Megavind, there is currently a need for 4-7 new test sites in Denmark to meet the growing demand for testing next-generation wind turbines. This includes additional test pads for full-scale wind turbines and test facilities for blades longer than 100 metres.
The industry also wants to have the maximum authorized height for some of the test wind turbines to be increased to 300 metres.