US: GE Expands Onshore Wind Portfolio with North American Version of New 3.4 MW Wind Turbines

GE Renewable Energy (NYSE: GE) today introduced a North American version of its new 3 MW wind turbine platform in advance of the American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) WINDPOWER 2016 event in New Orleans. The turbine platform, which first debuted in Europe last November, now includes a new 60 Hz version of the 3.4 MW machine, with rotor diameter options of 130 or 137 meters.

This announcement follows the recent success of GE’s 2 MW wind platform, which was introduced a year ago at AWEA’s 2015 event. The new 2 MW machines began shipping late last year and recorded more than a gigawatt of U.S. orders in the first quarter of 2016.

Anne McEntee, President & CEO of GE’s Onshore Wind business, said “We were pleased to see strong orders when we launched our new 2 MW machines, and the addition of a 3 MW option gives our customers more flexibility for land-constrained areas and regions with complex geographies throughout North America. We now have a comprehensive technology portfolio capable of meeting a wide variety of wind conditions across the continent.”

The 3.4-130 model sits at a tower height of 85 meters, while the 3.4-137 climbs to 110 meters. The machines represent GE’s most powerful onshore wind turbines offered to date, with the 3.4-137 capable of providing up to 24 percent higher output than existing technology.

In addition, the new 3 MW machines feature the software analytics capabilities of GE’s Digital Wind Farm, which uses a virtual modeling system to enhance individual turbine configuration and site layout, aiming to capture more energy production from each site’s unique wind conditions. It is powered by the Predix software platform, the foundation for all of GE’s Industrial Internet applications.

GE’s 3 MW turbines are configurable to meet IEC class IIIA, IIB and IIIB wind conditions.