American Superconductor company (AMSC) and South Korea-based Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) have expanded their strategic alliance to jointly develop a 5MW full conversion wind turbine, primarily for use in the burgeoning offshore wind industry.
Under the terms of the alliance, the 5MW wind turbine design will be developed by HHI and AMSC’s wholly-owned subsidiary AMSC Windtec.
Once HHI begins volume production of the wind turbines, which is expected to commence by the end of 2011, it will purchase power electronic components for the 5MW wind turbines from AMSC.
In October 2008, AMSC Windtec licensed doubly-fed 1.65MW and 2MW induction wind turbine designs to HHI, of which, HHI has already begun volume production of the 1.65MW turbines.
HHI has also ordered an initial ten wind turbine electrical control systems from AMSC for use in its first 2MW wind turbines and said it plans to commission its first 2MW wind turbines by mid-June, with the intention of entering volume production of these wind turbines by the end of this year.