At the end of September, 2020, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy filed a patent infringement complaint against GE Renewable Energy in the U.S.
District Court for the Middle District of Florida alleging that GE’s offshore wind turbine Haliade-X infringes Siemens Gamesa’s offshore Direct Drive technology patents.
A spokesperson for Siemens Gamesa issued the following statement: “As the global leading provider of offshore wind turbines with more than 1,000 offshore Direct Drive turbines installed and more than 2,000 sold, Siemens Gamesa is strongly committed to the offshore wind power market and invests heavily in research and innovation to increase efficiency and reduce the levelized cost of energy (LCoE). The protection of intellectual property rights is essential to foster continued investments in innovation. Siemens Gamesa is determined to protect its offshore Direct Drive technology innovations and believes firmly in the case against GE.”
GE’s 12 MW Haliade-X is one of the most powerful turbines on the market. It features a 220-metre rotor and 107-metre long blades, which have been designed by LM Wind Power. The combination of a bigger rotor, longer blades and higher capacity factor makes Haliade-X less sensitive to wind speed variations, increasing the ability to generate power at low wind speeds. GE claims that the new model has a gross capacity factor of 63% and will be able to generate up to 67 GWh in gross annual energy. GE plans to commercialise the model by the end of 2021.
The filing of this latest patent infringement follows GE filing a claim with the US International Trade Commission against Siemens Gamesa regarding its low-voltage-ride-through and zero-voltage-ride-through technologies within the onshore market.