<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/first-wind-farm-recycles-original-turbine-blades-and-re-powers-with-five-times-more-capacity/>
"Scotland’s first ever wind farm has been successfully re-powered, thirty years
after it first entered operations, and is now five-times more powerful while
using fewer turbines.
ScottishPower, the UK’s first energy company to generate 100 per cent green
electricity and a subsidiary of Spanish utility firm Iberdrola, announced this
week that it had successfully “supercharged” the Hagshaw Hill wind farm.
Located near the village of Douglas, 50 kilometres south of Glasgow, the
Hagshaw Hill wind farm began operating in 1995 and was Scotland’s first
commercial wind farm. Originally consisting of 26 wind turbines with a capacity
of 16 megawatts (MW), a further 20 turbines were added in 2008.
Having reached the end of their original lifespan, the 26 original turbines
have been dismantled, to be replaced by 14 new, more powerful turbines that
will boast a nameplate capacity of 79 MW.
“Hagshaw Hill started Scotland’s wind revolution – and now it’s back online,
supercharged and ready to lead the next chapter,” said Charlie Jordan,
ScottishPower Renewables CEO.
“We’re proud of what this site represents: powering homes, powering communities
and powering Scotland’s clean energy future.”
Importantly, and putting the lie to some of the misinformation that often
accompanies the wind energy industry, ScottishPower partnered with Irish
plastics manufacturer Plaswire to recycle every blade from the original
turbines into new construction material, replacing concrete, timber, and
plastics.
“We’re pleased to have been awarded this significant contract to recover the
Hagshaw Hill blades and return these materials back into industry,” said Andrew
Billingsley, CEO of Plaswire.
“Plaswire’s recycling process diverts waste from incineration, reducing CO₂
emissions and replacing high carbon construction products.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
