Wind energy & turbine technology

News & in-depth analysis of wind energy technology, including wind turbines, turbine blades, drive trains, electricity transmission, smart grids and energy storage.

Sif wins Borssele III & IV order

By David Weston, 20 April 2018

NETHERLANDS: Fabrication specialist Sif Group has been awarded the contract to supply monopile foundations to the 731.5MW Borssele III & IV offshore wind project, being developed by the Blauwwind consortium.

Suction bucket strength increases during storms

By Craig Richard, 16 April 2018

GERMANY: The tensile capacity of suction buckets increases temporarily during extreme weather conditions, according to new research.

Towers produced from Thailand mobile site

By David Weston, 12 April 2018

THAILAND: Construction firm Max Bögl has produced the first hybrid tower components from its new mobile factory.

News and analysis

MHI Vestas unveils data and performance tools

By Craig Richard, 11 April 2018

DENMARK: MHI Vestas has launched a range of "smart" software packages to help wind farm operators increase performance, enhance turbine monitoring and real-time decision-making.

Dynamic cable study for floating sites launched

By David Weston, 11 April 2018

WORLDWIDE: A joint industry project (JIP) led by the Carbon Trust has launched two studies to investigate dynamic export cables and monitoring requirements for floating wind projects.

First EOWDC turbine installed

By Craig Richard, 10 April 2018

UK: The first 8.8MW turbine has been installed at Vattenfall's European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC) off the east coast of Scotland.

Van Oord-led group wins Borssele innovation site

By Craig Richard, 9 April 2018

NETHERLANDS: Oyster beds will be planted around two 9.5MW turbines at the Borssele V demonstration site, following a tender for the innovation site won by a consortium led by offshore services specialist Van Oord.

Battery installed at Goldwind subsidiary campus

By David Weston, 5 April 2018

CHINA: US storage supplier Primus Power has installed a flow battery system at the campus of Goldwind's micro-grid subsidiary Etechwin.

In depth

WindTech: Enercon opens new channels for green energy

By Eize de Vries, 22 March 2018

GERMANY: The German turbine maker has developed a high-performance charging station for the latest generation of electric vehicles, and has ambitious plans for wind power development in India and Argentina.

A palliative, not a panacea

By David Milborrow, 22 March 2018

WORLDWIDE: Storage is being heralded as the answer to many of the challenges to come with the transition towards electricity systems that use increasing amounts of variable renewable energy. But what benefits do these technologies really offer to justify their high costs?