EnBW and aerodyn engineering are testing two 18 meters tall, 1:10-scale wind turbine prototypes on a concrete floating platform in a flooded gravel pit near Bremerhaven.

The Nezzy2 project is to prove itself in the Baltic Sea in wind and wave conditions. If these trials go well, then the model will be fully tested with another partner in China. The research project aims to create a new offshore technology allowing wind turbines to float on the surface of the water.

Offshore wind turbines have until now been anchored at a maximum water depth of 50 meters to foundations in the seabed.

“The potential is huge. This new technology opens up countries and marine areas with greater water depths and expands the possibilities for renewable energy generation. We are testing Nezzy2 in partnership with aerodyn because it brings together a range of technical innovations.”
Dr. Hannah König, head of wind and marine technology at EnBW.

Aerodyn already successfully tested a 1:10-scale predecessor model with a single turbine in the sea off Japan in 2018. Nezzy2, its successor, has two rotors and has so far been tested on a scale of 1:36 in an artificial wave channel in Cork, Ireland.

“We are confident that Nezzy2 will enable the international offshore wind industry to generate wind power at sea even more cost-effectively in future. In EnBW, we have gained a partner for our test with ten years of experience in the construction and operation of offshore wind farms.”
Sönke Siegfriedsen, managing director aerodyn.