Windletter #93 - The list of the 27 new wind turbine models presented at China Wind Power 2024
Windletter #93 - The list of the 27 new wind turbine models presented at China Wind Power 2024
Also: Nabrawind presents a new range of towers, France identifies 10 GW offshore areas, getting to know X1 Wind's technology better, and more.
Hello everyone and welcome to a new issue of Windletter. I'm Sergio Fernández Munguía (@Sergio_FerMun) and here we discuss the latest news in the wind power sector from a different perspective. If you enjoy the newsletter and are not subscribed, you can do so here.
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First of all, I apologize for the delay since the last edition, but the truth is that I’ve been juggling several fronts that have been complicated to manage. That said, to make up for it, this week we will have a double portion, with an interesting Windstory that we will publish in the coming days.
The most read articles from the last edition were: the images of 3D model renders in sports stadiums, Kiko Maza's virtual visit to Wind Energy Hamburg, and the first major corrective maintenance on a floating offshore wind turbine.
That said, let's get to this week's news.
🌬️ Chinese manufacturers unveil 27 new wind turbine models at China Wind Power
China moves at a different pace.
On October 16, 17, and 18, the China Wind Power 2024 fair was held in Beijing, one of the largest in the world alongside Wind Energy Hamburg, and undoubtedly the one with the greatest influence from Chinese OEMs and suppliers.
A total of 12 local manufacturers attended: Goldwind, Envision, Mingyang, Windey, CRRC, CSSC, SANY, SEWPG, Dongfang Electric, Sinovel, SinoAzure WindPower (formerly Harbin Electric), and TZCO.
Some of them, honestly, I hadn’t heard of before, and as you can see, none of the Western companies are present, having long exited the Chinese market (Siemens Energy is there, but very likely as a supplier of electrical equipment rather than turbines).
To provide some context, according to the GWEC (Global Energy Council), of the 116.6 GW of new wind power installed in 2023, China installed 66%, around 77 GW.
China celebrated the milestone of 500 GW installed in the country during this edition of the fair, representing nearly half of the global installations, which are now approaching 1,100 GW.
But the most impressive part is that these 12 manufacturers have introduced a total of 27 new models. This wave of presentations has been neatly summarized in a table on the China Wind News website, which we’ve tried to translate as best as possible from Windletter. Please, let me know any error.
As you can see, large rotor and high-power turbines were showcased, among them:
Goldwind GWH300-20 (25 MW)
Envision EN-272/16.7 MW
CSSC Haizhuang H305-25MW
Dongfang Electric H2X000-31X
Shanghai Electric EW25.0-310
...
What caught my attention in particular is the GWH204-4-4.55 MW from Goldwind, optimized for winds as low as 4.5-5 m/s. This means a power density of just 122 kW/m2, likely the lowest in a commercial wind turbine worldwide. I wonder if these machines can truly make locations with such low resources viable and profitable.
Interestingly, this model closely aligns with DTU’s low-wind turbine concept we’ve discussed before. It’s also fascinating how Goldwind scales the same platform with different powers optimized according to the average wind at each site.
Other interesting news from the fair included:
Sany unveiling its test bench for turbines of up to 35 MW.
A “self-discipline” pact between several manufacturers to avoid the race to the bottom in pricing, which is also happening in the Chinese market. It’s intriguing to see these types of agreements made public.
Sinovel’s participation in the fair, a familiar name in the Spanish market.
Mingyang becoming a member of the GWO (Global Wind Organization).
TÜV Nord certifying Mingyang’s MySE18.X-260, which will surely help with bankability.
Thank you, Markel Meseguer San Martin, for the tips, and I’d like to recommend his notes on China Wind Power 2024 on LinkedIn.
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🚀 Tetrace accelerates its expansion in the United States
Since its founding in 2021, Tetrace’s U.S. subsidiary has seen remarkable growth, now employing over 70 professionals, including specialized technicians and office staff.
So far in 2024, the company has successfully managed over 20 maintenance, supervision, and blade repair projects, serving 10 of the leading wind companies in the country. Additionally, Tetrace also performs maintenance for solar plants, a service it aims to expand to other subsidiaries.
Based in Texas, Tetrace currently operates in South Dakota, Oklahoma, Michigan, Kansas, Illinois, and New Mexico, and also provides services in Canada. Naturally, Tetrace aims to expand its operations to other states and clients.
The U.S. subsidiary expects to close 2024 with a 40% revenue increase, demonstrating that the decision to expand into the U.S. was the right one and laying the foundation for future growth.
The U.S., along with Australia, Brazil, and the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East & Africa), are Tetrace's target markets in its 2024-2026 strategic plan.
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🏗️ Nabrawind introduces the Nabralift 3.MAX, a new tower for wind turbines up to 8 MW
Navarre-based company Nabrawind has introduced a new range of towers designed for wind turbines up to 8 MW, named Nabralift 3.MAX, which can reach up to 210 meters in height.
The design is an evolution of the NBL3.0, enhancing its load capacity by 30% to make it compatible with higher-power machines.
I really like Nabrawind’s new graphic, which provides a quick understanding of onshore tower technology and how their product positions against conventional steel towers, hybrid concrete-zero towers, and 100% concrete ones.
The new Nabralift 3.MAX retains the same geometry and technology as the previous 3.0 tower family. This family comprises seven different tower models, configured with the same transition piece and a varying number of sections for the “tripod” part. By combining modules, heights up to 112 meters can be achieved, allowing final hub heights between 195 and 210 meters.
Certification activities will begin shortly, with the first 3.MAX Nabralift unit, hosting a turbine over 7 MW, expected to be installed next year.
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📏 Bigger is not better, by Lars Bondo
Occasionally, Lars Bondo, former onshore CEO of Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, Co-CEO of MHI Vestas Offshore, and CEO of Nordex, among others, publishes interesting reflections on LinkedIn that usually spark quite a stir.
In one of his latest posts, he reflects on the continuous growth in wind turbine size, following Sany’s announcement of launching a 15 MW turbine.
Lars argues that we don’t need bigger turbines, but rather turbines manufactured in series and in significant volume. This would improve quality, enhance industrialization, and make Western OEMs profitable.
Lars even suggests that governments could set limits on wind turbine sizes, although that seems hard to achieve in a global market.
In any case, it's very interesting to read part 1, part 2, and the comments section.
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🇫🇷 France identifies offshore zones for up to 10 GW of capacity
The French Government has revealed its intentions to launch the tenth offshore wind auction (AO10) with a capacity of up to 10 GW. The process is expected to begin in the coming months, with contract awards planned for fall 2026.
I found a map on LinkedIn showing France’s offshore wind farms at various stages of their life.
Interestingly, two of the upcoming auctions will also be for floating wind (250 MW + 250 MW), where France is making a committed push. Just recently, it awarded its first 250 MW at an impressive price of €86/MWh. Although it’s a price that requires reading the fine print, as pointed out by Wind Europe.
The French Energy Ministry aims to have 18 GW of offshore wind in service by 2035, an ambitious goal but one that can be achieved with announcements like this.
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⚙️ Getting to know Pivot Buoy technology from X1 Wind
A couple of weeks ago, Spanish offshore wind startup X1 Wind released an interesting video detailing its Pivot Buoy platform.
Additionally, CEO Alex Raventos and CTO Carlos Casanovas were recently interviewed in Windpowermonthly, where they shared insights, such as “the steel required by their platform is 30 to 50% lower compared to existing systems” and that “smaller diameters in the mechanical structure allow the use of the onshore supply chain.”
As a tidbit, I can share one more thing: Alex Raventos attended the inauguration ceremony of Chinese manufacturer CRRC, celebrating the factory release of the world's largest floating wind turbine nacelle. At least that’s how it’s reported on this Chinese news site.
I’m not sure exactly what to make of it, but there it is.
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🏡 A Vestas V80 ready-to-live-in
I loved this collaboration between Vattenfall, the design studio Superuse, and Blade-Made, through which they have converted the nacelle of a dismantled Vestas V80 2 MW into a nice, ready-to-live-in module.
The nacelle of a V80 is 4 meters wide, 10 meters long, and 3 meters high, resulting in a sort of cozy 40-square-meter bungalow. From the outside, there is no doubt it is the nacelle of a wind turbine.
Obviously, this is not meant to be a solution to current housing issues, but why not imagine a campsite made of modules like this? I’d love to go… although some of you might prefer to wait for the repowering of 5-6 MW turbines before trying out one of these modules 😂
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Disclaimer: The opinions presented in Windletter are mine and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.