The first blade for Siemens Gamesa’s gigantic maiden 14MW-plus SG14.0-222DD, a 108-metre-long monster nearly as long as the Saturn V space rocket, is ready for installation on the OEM's prototype.
Designed using the Siemens Gamesa IntegralBlade concept, the blade – which eclipses by a single metre the previous record-holder, LM Wind Power’s LM 107.0 P – is made of fused overlays of carbon and fiberglass laid up and cast in a single mould.
The OEM is planning to retool fabrication halls “in all international regions” for manufacturing capacity for the blade.
“The first Siemens Gamesa B108 blade is now a reality! It's the longest blade ever produced... and marks another milestone in how we push the offshore wind industry forward with tangible, pioneering solutions,” said a spokesperson for the OEM in a tweet.
The blades for the SG14.0-222DD, which has enough horsepower under the hood to single-handedly supply electricity to 18,000 homes, will make up a rotor with a 222-metre diameter sweeping an area of 39,000m2 to turn a direct-drive transmission system and permanent magnet generator, promising a 25% higher annual energy production than its forerunner, the 11MW SG11.0-200DD.
Installation of the turbine prototype is set for the Danish national wind testing centre at Østerild “later in 2021”.
Siemens Gamesa rival Vestas last week unveiled its 15MW model, the V236-15.0MW.