EDP Renewables North America announced that it has completed a repowering of the Blue Canyon II Wind Farm in Carnegie (Oklahoma).
The company said 73 of Blue Canyon II’s 84 turbines were repowered, along with each turbine’s nacelle, blades and top tower section. Vestas upgraded the turbines from V80 1.8MW machines to V110 two-MW machines. One of EDP’s short-term priorities is the adoption of blade recycling practices across its projects.
Wind repowering allows owners to retrofit existing power plants with new or refurbished technology. This includes erecting taller and more efficient wind turbines to increase their productivity. Utilizing existing infrastructure and grid connections, repowered projects can often offer additional cost-saving benefits.
According to a study done by the International Energy Agency (IEG) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, (NREL), replacing old wind turbines can have other benefits than cost and productivity.
EDP Renewables said its repowering project is expected to increase power production more than 30% annually and extend the project’s life an additional 20 to 30 years. Blue Canyon II went online in 2003.
The 423 MW Blue Canyon Wind Farm, Oklahoma’s largest, is made up of four phases. These include a 45-turbine Farm, 55-turbine Farm, 66 Turbine Farm, 66 Turbine Farm, and an 84 Turbine Farm. It generates enough electricity to power more than 94,000 homes. The project extends west to Oklahoma City through Caddo and Comanche counties.
EDP Renewables also owns the 100 MW Arbuckle Mountain in Murray, Carter, and Dallas Counties that lie between Oklahoma City (northwest of Oklahoma City) and the 99 MW Redbed Plains Wind Farm located in Grady County.
According to U.S. Department of Energy statistics Oklahoma ranks third in U.S. states for installed wind power capacity, with 9,048MW. Texas is first with 33.133 MW, while Iowa is third with 11.660 MW.