LM Wind Power’s 73.5 meter blades became the first 70+ meter blades to be installed when Alstom inaugurated the largest offshore wind turbine in the world on March 19 at Carnet in the Loire-Atlantique region of France.
The impressive composite structures have been developed specifically for Alstom’s Haliade 150-6MW wind turbine in a close collaboration between the two companies to boost energy capture while keeping loads down. The innovative blade design has already been through several rounds of testing before being installed on the turbine in France.
LM Wind Power VP Sales & Marketing, Ian Telford states: “It was great to see LM blades mounted on the newest and biggest turbine in the world as well as see the excitement this technological leap has made in the offshore world. Our technology enables us to design and manufacture relatively lighter glass fiber and polyester blades for the length, but above all, LM Wind Power has proven ability to handle the industrialization of these blades, which is not easy.”
Alstom’s Haliade 150-6MW turbine has been EDF-EN / Dong Energy’s choice developed in response to a call for tenders launched by the French government that aims to install 3 GW of wind turbine power off French shores by 2015. Depending on the results of the tenders to be announced in April, Alstom and LM Wind Power plan to establish a blade manufacturing facility in Cherbourg with the capacity to produce up to 100 sets of 73.5 meter blades a year. Production is planned to start in 2016.
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Offshore WIND staff, March 21, 2012; Image: alstom