Siemens receives three onshore wind orders in UK and Ireland

Siemens Wind Power and Renewables Division has been awarded orders from three different customers to construct, install and commission 52 units of its D3 direct drive wind turbines at three projects in Ireland and Scotland. The three wind farms Raheenleagh in County Wicklow, 70km south of Dublin; Aikengall 2, to the south east of Edinburgh; and Phase 1 of Galway Wind Park, located near to the city of Galway, represent a major contribution to onshore wind power generation in the UK and Ireland. Together the wind projects are expected to supply clean renewable energy for nearly 100,000 households. All the orders include long-term service contracts ranging from five years for Galway Phase 1, to 10 years for Raheenleagh and a 20-year service contract for Aikengall 2.

The 52 D3 product platform wind turbines will be installed with models SWT-3.0-101, SWT-3.2-108 and SWT-3.2-113 selected according to site specific wind conditions and requirements. All of these Siemens direct drive wind turbines feature a PMG generator for a high energy yield with high efficiency at low operational costs. The Raheenleagh wind farm will be equipped with 11 SWT-3.2-108 wind turbines offering an optimized energy yield at the site specific wind conditions due to large 108 meter rotors and enhanced 3.2 megawatt generators. The installation of the 35 megawatts (MW) project, by Irish companies Coillte and ESB, is scheduled to begin in May 2016 with a commissioning date in autumn 2016. Community Windpower’s Aikengall 2 wind farm project, consisting of 19 SWT-3.2-113 turbines has a planned delivery and installation date of early summer 2016. It is adjacent to the existing Crystal Rig 2 site, which is also using Siemens wind turbines.

At SSE’s "Galway Wind Park Phase 1", Siemens will install 22 of its SWT-3.0-101 direct drive wind turbines. The site has medium to high wind speeds. With their 101 meter rotors the Siemens SWT-3.0-101 wind turbines are designed to offer solid performance even under extreme wind conditions. Commissioning of the 64MW project is expected for early 2017. With energy for approximately 22,500 households at the Raheenleagh project, another 42,000 homes at Aikengall 2 and further 33,000 at the Galway Phase 1 project a total of approximately 97,500 households in the UK and Ireland will be supplied with clean renewable wind energy from the three projects.

“We are proud to be selected to provide both the turbines and long-term service for these important new projects in Scotland and Ireland," said Thomas Richterich, CEO Onshore, Siemens Wind Power and Renewables Division. “The different site-specific requirements of these projects underscore the strength of our D3 product platform. With our proven and diverse portfolio of technology we are able to offer the best choice for a wide range of onshore projects.”