Repowering wind turbines becoming more common in US, EIA says
Repowering older wind turbines is becoming more common in the United States as the nation’s fleet ages, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said recently in a news release.
Full repowering, which has mostly occurred in California, involves decommissioning and removing existing turbines and replacing them with newer turbines at the same site.
Partial repowering involves replacing some components of wind turbines to increase performance.
According to the EIA, 12 percent of the nation’s wind turbines were installed before 2000, but these turbines make up just 2 percent of U.S.-installed wind electricity generating capacity.
Repowering wind turbines can increase fleet output by 25 percent and add 20 years to turbine life from the time of the repower, General Electric said.
EIA data shows that three projects, one in Illinois, one in Texas, and one in California, are currently planned for repowering. Rocky Mountain Power is currently awaiting a public hearing regarding its intention to repower wind turbines in Wyoming. NextEra Energy has said that it plans to repower two wind farms in Texas by the end of this year.
According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), annual U.S. wind repowering investment could grow to $25 billion by 2030.
