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LM GLASFIBER
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BIG FAN: LM Glasfiber's 61.5m-blade is the world's largest |
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Take Me To The River |
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Can the mighty Congo be tapped for power without destroying fragile ecosystems? |
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By MARK HALPER |
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Posted Monday, May 10, 2004 17:05 GMT
In the wind-power industry, bigger just might be better. In the past 20 years, the cost of wind power has decreased by 80%, thanks to higher efficiency from bigger turbines. The larger the blade area is, the more wind it catches. While 10 years ago it required 40 turbines to power a town of 8,000, today one large turbine can do the trick. That's why, in a vast grey hangar in the middle of the Danish countryside, workers at LM Glasfiber are putting the finishing touches on part of the most powerful wind machine to date — three sleek, 61.5-m-long rotor blades. Once mounted on a 5-MW turbine, they can supply the electrical power needed for 5,000 households.
With European governments pledging to boost their use of sustainable energy, manufacturers like LM Glasfiber are betting on a wind boom. Germany, for example, plans to phase out 12 nuclear power plants by 2030 and establish offshore wind farms with a total capacity of 30 GW — equivalent to 6,000 turbines of the 5-MW type. Denmark already covers 20% of its electricity consumption by wind power, and the government says it will increase the share to 25% over the next five years.
Founded 64 years ago as a furniture manufacturer in the small western Danish town of Lunderskov, LM Glasfiber sells about 3300 million worth of wind turbine blades a year, making it the world's leader. The new blades, which took 15 months to develop, can withstand the worst of the world's weather for more than 20 years. LM Glasfiber's developers are also busy perfecting optimal lightning protection and intelligent blade monitoring, which ensures the blade an optimal position under all wind conditions.
When the blades are finished later this spring, they will be transported to their German buyer, REpower, for testing on a prototype turbine. "Ten years ago, building such huge blades would have been nearly as difficult as putting a man on the moon," says Steen Broust Nielsen, group marketing manager at LM Glasfiber. Now that big blades seem viable, the next stop is installation offshore — the most efficient location for wind energy production and the least nuisance for people.
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