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Project assesses wind power for Hong Kong

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Jun 1, 2006

BMT Asia Pacific has been commissioned to assist in the feasibility assessment to develop an offshore wind farm in Hong Kong waters.

BMT Asia Pacific a subsidiary of BMT has been commissioned by Wind Prospect, a leading independent renewable energy developer, constructor and operator, to assist in the feasibility assessment to develop an offshore wind farm in Hong Kong waters.

Following the company's initial support to Wind Prospect on site selection, BMT has been retained to assist the evaluation and mitigation of environmental and marine issues associated with the project that will consist of up to sixty turbines, each with a rated capacity of approximately 3MW.

For every year of operation, the proposed offshore wind farm would offset approximately 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, over 4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide during its 20-25 year lifetime, or a saving of over 100,000 lorry-loads of coal equivalent carbon dioxide.

Dr Richard Colwill, Managing Director of BMT Asia Pacific commented: "The land resources of Hong Kong are very constrained and the choice of an offshore site allows the development of a substantive renewable generating capacity".

"BMT is very pleased to be assisting Wind Prospect in this project which builds on our local environmental and shipping experience and wider renewables expertise".

The objective of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) is to demonstrate the compatibility of the project with existing local criteria.

Possible impacts on the environment from the project include the effect on water quality, ecology, waste management and cultural heritage.

In addition to the EIA, BMT will also be assisting on the marine safety issues surrounding the project.

BMT's capabilities within this field are drawn from the company's numerous studies on coastal and marine ecology for artificial islands, ports, reclamations and wetlands and almost two decades of experience in and around Hong Kong.

"We are delighted to be working with BMT on our environmental and navigation impact assessments and look forward to extending the initial pre-feasibility research to assess the feasibility of building an offshore wind farm in Hong Kong with respect to the marine environment and the local marine community", said Alex Tancock, General Manager of Wind Prospect (Hong Kong).