The largest site for turbine prototyping and certification in Europe has opened on the grounds of Wageningen University near Lelystad in the Netherlands, with the site fully booked for the next seven years, as wind turbine manufacturers get in line to test their latest designs at the facility.
Ecofys Wind Turbine Testing Services (WTTS) will operate the testing facility, which can service 12 turbines with tip heights up to 200 metres and a combined installed capacity of up to 30MW. Seven international parties have already contracted WTTS to test their turbines.
Wind-turbine testing facilities are a vital factor in helping to progress innovation in the wind-turbine sector, plus they are also needed for certification, which is necessary for obtaining permits.
Manufactures will also use the test location as part of their own innovation programmes. The test site in Lelystad provides all infrastructure, wind measurements and wind turbine measurements that are required for turbine certification, according to Ecofys. The accredited measurement services will be provided by Ecofys in collaboration with windtest grevenbroich GmbH.
Artist’s impression of the now-operational wind-turbine testing facility, which is located near Lelystad in the Netherlands
Achieving sustainable energy supply
According to the recently published The Energy Report by Ecofys and WWF, wind energy will be one main factor in achieving a fully sustainable and renewable global energy system by 2050.
“We can do this by improving the technologies that are already at hand,” says Manon Janssen, CEO of Ecofys.
