Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) has unveiled a new low-wind turbine for its 4.X platform with a nominal power rating of 4.7MW.
Its new SG 4.7-155 will feature 76-metre blades and will be equipped with OptimaFlex technology, enabling it to operate between 4MW and 5MW, depending on site conditions.
The 155-metre rotor was also used on SGRE’s more powerful 5.X platform, and so optimises research and development investment and industrial capital expenditure, while reducing the development cycle and helping to bring new products to market faster, the manufacturer explained.
A prototype of the new model is expected to be ready by mid-2021, with the start of serial production planned for the end of 2021.
The SG 4.7-155 adds to SGRE’s low-wind portfolio, which also includes the SG 5.8-170 turbine, unveiled earlier this year.
Siemens Gamesa claimed that the new model’s annual energy production in average low-wind conditions will be 5% higher than that of the SG 5.0-145.
It will also have a “low noise output” of 105 decibels, making it suitable for countries with strict noise restrictions, the company added. The American Academy of Audiology suggests that 105dB is slightly quieter than snowmobiles or MP3 players at full volume.
The turbine will have a 25-year lifetime for IEC-Class 3 sites – up from the 20 years typically offered.
Siemens Gamesa added that low-wind turbines are important for already well-developed onshore wind markets where the space for higher wind sites is limited.
The company stated: “By increasing the size of the rotors, wind turbines are therefore capable of providing a successful business case to produce higher clean energy production even with lower wind conditions.”
