Vestas presents new 15-MW offshore wind turbine

Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems A/S (CPH:VWS) today introduced to the market a new 15-MW offshore wind turbine model with the industry’s largest swept area and rotor diameter, targeting serial production in 2024.

The new V236-15.0 MW machine will have a rotor diameter of 236 metres (774.3 ft) and a wind-swept area of over 43,000 sq m, the manufacturer announced on Tuesday. The new model will offer optimised design through synergies from the company’s existing turbine platforms, including the 9-MW and the EnVentus ones, and will have a capacity factor exceeding 60%, depending on the site-specific conditions.

At 15 MW, the giant turbine will thus surpass the 14-MW rating of the latest models announced by rivals Siemens Gamesa (BME:SGRE) and GE Renewables Energy.

“With the V236-15.0MW, we raise the bar in terms of technological innovation and industrialisation in the wind energy industry, in favour of building scale,” said chief technology officer Anders Nielsen.

Vestas CEO Henrik Andersen expects the new machine to drive the offshore wind development by lowering the levelised cost of the energy, which in turn will make the company's customers more competitive in future tenders.

Vestas intends to install the first prototype of the new turbine in 2022. Its annual output of around 80 GWh per year is expected to be enough to supply around 20,000 European homes.

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