RWE has completed the repowering of the Krusemark-Ellingen wind farm in Saxony-Anhalt, in Germany, boosting output by a quarter.
The repowering has increased output from 15.7MW to 19.8MW and has deployed a recycling concept for old turbines, towers and foundations.
Krusemark-Ellingen was built between 1998 and 2004 and the repowering was recently completed, with the installation of the sixth and last new turbine.
The modern Nordex turbines, each have an output of 3.3MW and replace the previous 15 Enercon turbines.
Krusemark-Ellingen is RWE’s third repowering project in Germany.
Replacing older turbines with fewer but significantly more powerful turbines makes it possible to extend the life cycle of many sites.
Studies show that the use of modern turbines on the areas previously designated in Germany alone could increase wind power generation to more than 210 terawatt hours (TWh) by 2030, compared to 132TWh in 2020.
At the wind farm the dismantling of the existing turbines and the installation of the new turbines took place simultaneously, making it possible to keep the old turbines in operation for as long as possible and to generate electricity.
Jens Edler-Krupp, who is responsible for the development of RWE’s onshore wind farms in Germany, said most of the decommissioned Enercon turbines are sold as complete sets – including the steel towers – for reuse in other wind farms.
Edler-Krupp said: “In addition, part of the material from the old foundations will be reused at the same location as a base course for the new access roads.”