French company Sterblue has been awarded a contract by Irish utility ESB to carry out inspections of blades on turbines at the latter’s 26 wind farms in Ireland and the UK.
Sterblue will perform the work using off-the-shelf drones and artificial intelligence, capturing data and carrying out analysis.
Inspections can also be undertaken throughout the Covid-19 pandemic in line with social distancing requirements, the company said.
Sterblue presented initially at Free Electrons – a partnership of 10 top energy utilities from across the globe – in 2018 and succeeded in winning a place on the accelerator programme for startups working in the energy sector.
Sterblue chief technology officer Vincent Lecrubier said: “We were just a small start-up of about six or seven people at that time. Free Electrons gave us the confidence to go into production.”
The company performed a pilot project with ESB on 15 turbines in Wales in 2018.
Sterblue chief executive Geoffrey Vancassel said: “We’re extremely happy to continue our long-term partnership with ESB. The collaborative mindset has been part of ESB’s DNA since the beginning of our relationship and that has been really helpful to move forward.”
ESB deputy chief executive Jerry O’Sullivan said that Sterblue’s solution to inspect turbines is entirely in line with the company’s Brighter Future strategy for 2030
“Sterblue’s innovative, safe, fast and accurate solution helps to optimise running time of each wind turbine in our portfolio, meaning that they can generate more clean electricity for the communities we serve,” he said
“It is of course particularly pleasing that our initial connection with Sterblue was forged through their participation in the Free Electrons programme.”
Sterblue has offices in France, Portugal and the US and serves more than 25 customers throughout 16 different countries.