JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #143 - November/December 2021 - 33

FEATURE
Vestas V236-15.0 MW: the Eiffel Tower of the seas
windblade
The motto " the bigger the better " is becoming a reality for offshore wind turbines with
the new Vestas V236-15.0 MW that, according to its designers, promises extraordinary
electricity output. At 280 m in height and 236 m in diameter, the giant size of this behemoth
wind turbine is diffi cult to fully comprehend. The fi rst prototype should be installed before
the end of 2022 and large-scale production should begin in 2024. Without composites, it
would have been impossible to make such giant blades.
V
estas will install the V236-15 MW off -
shore prototype wind turbine at the
Østerild National test centre for large
wind turbines in Western Jutland, Denmark,
in the second half of 2022 and the fi rst kWh
is planned for the fourth quarter of that year.
Stretching 280 m into the air with a production
output of 80 GWh/year, the prototype
will be the tallest and most powerful wind
turbine in the world.
Th e prototype development work has already
progressed across Vestas' R&D and production
sites in Denmark. Th e blade moulds
were developed at the company' blade factory
in Lem and the 115.5-m-long prototype
blades will begin manufacturing later this year
at the off shore blade factory in Nakskov. Th e
nacelle will be developed and assembled at
the off shore nacelle factory in Lindø port of
Odense. All the large components will be preassembled
and transported to Østerild, where
installation will take place.
Th e prototype will be installed onshore to
facilitate easy access for testing prior to installation,
and the main prototype components
will already have undergone thorough testing
and verifi cation at Vestas' and its partners' test
facilities. During the initial period of operations,
the company will collect the data needed
to obtain a type certifi cate, which is a key
step in reaching large-scale production of the
turbine in 2024.
An amazing data sheet
With a swept area exceeding 43,000 m2
V236-15.0 MW delivers, according to Ves,
the
Vestas V236-15.0 MW available in 2024
tas, industry-leading performance and moves
the boundaries of wind energy production
to around 80 GWh/year, enough to power
around 20,000 European households and displace
more than 38,000 tonnes of CO2
, which
is the equivalent to removing 25,000 passenger
cars from the road every year.
Th e V236-15.0 MW is designed to deliver
excellent performance while reducing the
number of turbines at park level, strengthening
the project's business case. Th e globally
applicable off shore turbine off ers 65% higher
annual energy production than the V174-9.5
MW, and for a 900 MW wind park it increases
production by 5% with 34 fewer turbines. It
off ers excellent partial-load production, resulting
in a more stable energy production,
and a capacity factor over 60% depending on
site-specifi c conditions.
Promising commercial results
With the invitation to tender launched in
February 2021, the fi rst pre-selected tenderer
status for the V236-15.0 MW turbine was secured
in July 2021 for the 900 MW He Dreiht
project in Germany, located in the German
North Sea within 85 km of the island of Borkum
and 104 km west of the island of Helgoland.
Th
e Empire Off shore Wind, a joint venture
between Equinor and BP, also named Vestas
as the preferred turbine supplier for the
2.1 GW Empire Wind 1 and Empire Wind
2 off shore wind projects in New York, USA.
Th is is one of the largest preferred supplier
agreements to be announced in the USA. Th e
company will provide 138 industry-leading
V236-15.0 MW turbines for Empire Wind
1 and 2, located 15-30 miles off the coast of
Long Island. With this project, New York,
Equinor, BP, and Vestas are together taking
a leading role in the USA's off shore industry
development and bringing the country one
step closer to achieving President Biden's goal
of 30 GW of off shore wind capacity installed
by 2030 as well as New York State's goal of
installing 9 GW of off shore wind capacity by
2035.
More information:
www.vestas.com
N°143 November - December 2021 / jec composites magazine
33
Feature Energy
Courtesy of Vestas Wind Systems A/S

http://www.vestas.com

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #143 - November/December 2021

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