New super tall low-wind turbine tipped for Australia   

The Age
September 13 2017

One of the largest turbines in the world could soon be swinging its blades on an Australia wind farm.   

The new turbine, developed by engineering giant GE, stands 240 metres tall from the ground to the tip of its rotors. That compares to an average tip height in current wind farms of between 130 metres and 160 metres tall.

The turbines have been created for use in low-wind regions, such as Australia, with 77-metre long carbon blades requiring less wind speed to turn.

The output is also greater with the turbines able to provide up to 30 per cent more power than those in use at facilities like AGL's Silverton wind farm.

"It is well suited for low to medium wind speed regions around the world—examples include Germany, Turkey and Australia—as well as for mechanisms like auctions, as countries around the world are putting an increased emphasis on lowering the cost of energy," said Pete McCabe president of GE's onshore wind business.

A protoytpe will be in operation in Europe next year and available in Australian in 2019. GE is major player in the burgeoning wind farm sector in Australia and this is the companies second largest market worldwide.

GE also claims the design of the turbine enables faster installation as the machine's smaller turbine head allows smaller cranes to be used in wind farm construction.

According to the Australian Energy Market Operator, there is more than 19,000 MW of proposed new energy capacity forecast to come online in the coming years, with nearly two-thirds from wind generation sources, driven in part by the rapidly falling costs of renewable technologies.

Each turbine is capable of generating 4.8 megawatts, with approximately 100 needed to replace a typical 400 MW turbine in a coal fired power station. A single wind turbine is capable of powering 5000 homes annually with GE claiming can operate in higher wind speeds than other designs.

According to the manufacturer, operational noise levels have also been lowered to 104 dBA, or the sound of a loud drum nearby, and potentially as low as 100 dBA in certain conditions, addressing one of the key concerns to wind turbine installations.

In the first 14 months of its existence, the federal government's Wind Farm Commission dealt with 90 complaints, nearly half of which related to noise, this is despite the fact the Australian Medical Association has found no link "support the view that the infrasound or low-frequency sound generated by wind farms causes adverse health effects on populations residing in their vicinity"

whiteknight wrote on Sep 13^th, 2017 at 6:08pm:



Good to see that AGL is at the cutting edge of proving Australians with intermittent power, pity they aren't too keen on investing in base load power. Maybe there isn't the same profit margin on cheap reliable base load power.

Of course this Greeny bulldust is from the Lefty AGE where reality is only something that occurs somewhere else.

It is ludicrous to say these subsidized monstrosities can replace a coal generator which supplies steady voltage and frequency supply 24 hours a day every day.

The output of a windymill is all over the place simply because the energy input is all over the place and then it stops when the wind stops and also when the wind blows too hard.

About all these subsidized windymills are good for is powering electrolyzers to produce HYDROGEN to power our cars and trucks pollution free into the future because the unstable wonky output doesn't matter all that much.

And what the gooley Greenies don't know is that when the voltage of a subsidized windymill falls, a brownout, it can burn out motors in household appliances such as washing machines, dryers, fridges.

The Greenies "solution" is simple - close down ALL Australian industry and send the work to China which has oodles of Clean Coal generators to power their industry. And then import the inferior quality goods into Australia.

Something that even a poorly educated Socialist indoctrinated Greeny might understand is the simple analogy to a windmill filling a water trough on a farm for cattle.

Now when the wind blows everything is fine but when it stops the trough is empty and the cattle will die.

So the farmer has to cart water to fill the trough.  This is precisely why reliable Clean Coal generators are required to prop up the shoddy foreign constructed subsidized windymills when they fail which is often.

juliar wrote on Sep 14^th, 2017 at 7:53am:




Settle down dear, you need your meds.

Electricity prices will be a big election decider and Mal is moving towards cheaper power with coal while Bull S. is stuck on his technically unsustainable 50% renewable rubbish which will send electricity prices up thru the roof.

The spectacle of pensioners dying during winter because they can't afford to turn the heater on will be a BIG election winner for the LIBS.

And as usual the RedNeck doesn't have any argument for or against and so just has an ineffectual go at the poster who TELLS THE TRUTH.

But those in the know no that when a Lefty is impressed he starts hurling abuse and insults.



Fortunately this dangerous acrid pollution resulting from manufacturing renewable rubbish is all occurring over there in China.

Last gasp from Redneck - just has a go at the poster who TELLS THE TRUTH.