Vestas is scaling up a blade recycling partnership initiative it has started up in the US.
Vestas said it is “open to offering the solution” in more regions where local recycling infrastructure is robust, and demand from wind farm operators can be established.
The first large scale project was successfully completed in September, where Vestas service teams decommissioned and recycled 10 turbine blades.
Several ongoing projects are in progress across multiple sites, including the 151MW Blue Canyon 2 repowering project, as well as the 63MW Snyder Wind project with Enel Green Power.
Recycling of the decommissioned blades was a firm requirement from the operators of both projects.
At present, all ongoing recycling projects in the US have reached a scale of 285 turbines blades in total, including nacelle covers and hub covers.
As part of the solution, Vestas teams scope an optimal recycling project plan to align with locally available solutions and customer needs.
The recyclable glass fibre material is then separated from the turbine and cut into transportable units.
The material is then transported to vetted recycling partners, using a glass fibre recycling method that aligns with the customer’s sustainability ambitions.
Recycling methods can include cement co-processing, gasification, forming new composite materials, and reclaiming glass fibre and carbon fibres.
“At Vestas, we’re ready to support the scaling up of glass fiber recycling worldwide, leveraging our global transport and logistics footprint, and we’re ready to offer recycling partnership solutions wherever we see an opportunity with local recycling partners and where it is valued by customers,” said Lisa Ekstrand, senior director and head of sustainability, Vestas.
To help drive more maturity in industrial recycling, Vestas is currently part of the DecomBlades project, a cross-sector initiative striving to increase the adoption of recycling practices by developing pathways for commercialisation.