How to Recycle an Offshore Wind Farm

The 'SeeOff - Strategy Development for the Efficient Deconstruction of Offshore Wind Farms' project was launched at the beginning of November 2018 and has the task of developing appropriate deconstruction strategies. Research facilities and companies involved in the construction are partnering to get answers what to do with old offshore wind farms. The results of the research project will be compiled in a handbook for determination and evaluation of decommissioning strategies and made available to the whole offshore industry.

So far, only three offshore wind farms were dismantled worldwide, so there is a lack of experience. However, it is already foreseeable today that the first turbines will have to be dismantled in Germany in the next 10 to 15 years. At present, neither the requirements, techniques or procedures for dismantling, logistics and recycling associated with dismantling, nor the resulting costs and effects on people and the environment are sufficiently known.

In order to change this, the Bremen University of Applied Sciences has now taken over the project coordination for SeeOff and regulates the interaction between research and industry. The project is funded with € 1.1 million over a period of 3 years by the BMWi as part of the 6th Energy Research Programme.

Among the participating companies is Windfair Member Deutsche Windtechnik.