Wind Energy Technologies Office

February 10, 2022

In This Issue

• Featured Story: A Wind Energy Career Celebrated with “Gust-o”
• News
• Events
• In Case You Missed It

Continue to follow the Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) for the latest news, events, and updates.

A Wind Energy Career Celebrated with “Gust-o” After 31 years, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s wind energy program manager Will Shaw has retired. Learn more about Will’s storied career, how his work helped shape our understanding of atmospheric science and wind energy, and what he plans to do next.

News

DOE Requests Inputs to Inform Social Science Research Related to Offshore Wind

DOE’s Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has released a Request for Information (RFI) to gather information on research needs related to the effects of offshore wind development on communities, in the context of a just clean energy transition. The RFI will inform future DOE activities and research. Responses are due March 11.

National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium Opens Round 2 of Solicitation for Innovative Technologies to Advance Offshore Wind

The National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium (NOWRDC) released a new round in its competitive solicitation: Innovation in Offshore Wind Solicitation 2.0. This round will fund projects that facilitate ocean co-use, mitigate impacts to marine wildlife, enhance offshore wind power forecasting, and improve transmission system reliability and resilience. Concept papers are due March 9. Details are on the NOWRDC website.

WINDExchange Publishes New 100-Meter Wind Resource Maps

WETO’s WINDExchange initiative has released new wind resource maps to help accurately define, measure, and forecast the nation’s land-based and offshore wind resources. New land-based maps are available for Missouri and Tennessee, and new offshore maps are available for Texas-Louisiana, North Carolina-South Carolina, and Mississippi-Alabama-Georgia-Florida.

Study Assesses Additive Manufacturing of Critical Rare-Earth-Free Magnets for Electrical Machines

DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and National Renewable Energy Laboratory have published a study as part of the MADE3D initiative, highlighting 3D printing of magnetic components for large electrical machines like wind turbines. Hard magnets based on heavy rare-earth elements are vulnerable to potential supply chain disruption. The study looks at 3D printing of alternative magnets designed for applications with no critical rare-earth magnets.

Events

U.S. Offshore Wind Synthesis of Environmental Effects Research (SEER) Webinar: Electromagnetic Fields & Vessel Collision: Effects on Marine Life from Offshore Wind Energy

Webinar: February 24, 2022
11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. EDT

This SEER webinar will cover the existing understanding of potential effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) on marine life in offshore wind areas. The webinar will summarize how some species sense and respond to EMF and how EMF from offshore wind farms may interact with marine life.

Distributed Wind 2021 Lobby Day and Business Conference

Conference: February 28–March 3, 2022, Arlington, VA

Hosted by the Distributed Wind Energy Association, this conference convenes the distributed and community wind industry to showcase this sector of the wind industry, attend educational sessions, and network.

In Case You Missed It

• The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released a report outlining regional and national strategies to accelerate and maximize U.S. offshore wind deployment and operation. 
• The National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium awarded more than $3 million to six new projects to advance to U.S. offshore wind manufacturing and supply chain and has welcomed the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to its membership.
• The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released phase I findings for the WETO-funded Big Adaptive Rotor (BAR) project.
• DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy has launched a new email list and web page to share its open funding opportunities and prizes.
• The American Wind Wildlife Institute is now officially REWI, the Renewable Energy Wildlife Institute, to reflect the expansion of their scope to include solar.