A rotor has come loose and fallen off a Nordex turbine at the 400MW Øyfjellet Wind Park in Norway.
Developer Øyfjellet Wind said a technical problem occurred in turbine number 18 at the beginning of June in 2023.
Since then, the area around has been cordoned off, while technical personnel from the operator Nordex have assessed the damage and worked on repairs.
As part of the repair process, the gearbox has been removed from the wind turbine.
The company said: “This, along with other special circumstances surrounding the damage and repair work, has led to an unusual risk that the rotor falling could fall off the turbine.
“On January 27, the rotor became loose and fell off the turbine.
“Risk analyses had shown that this could happen, the area had been cordoned off and there was no danger to health or safety.
“This was an isolated incident and no other turbines are affected and will continue to operate normally.”
Øyfjellet Wind added it will conduct a root cause analysis of both the damage in June and the rotor coming loose, in dialogue with the operator, Nordex.
The turbine firm said that the wings are broken, and as soon as the weather permits it, it will cover the various components and start the clearance work.
Nordex added: “During a component exchange in June 2023 the works were postponed for safety reasons due to high wind.
“During this postponement the rotor moved out of position.
“Following an evaluation by Nordex Group experts it was decided that a special tool would need to be developed to bring the rotor back to position as this was the only feasible solution from a technical and safety perspective.
“The rotor unfortunately fell to the ground due to high wind before the special tooling could be installed.
“The turbine was installed in September 2022. The wind farm consists of 72 N149/5.X wind turbines totalling 400MW.
“As soon as the proper disposal of debris and operating materials has been completed, and a full survey of the remaining tower has been undertaken, a replacement rotor can be installed.
“This was an isolated incident and there is no risk to any other of the turbines on the Øyfjellet windfarm or in the wider fleet.”
Nordex added that it expects the turbine to be back in normal operation during the autumn of 2024.