Wind Turbine Technology and Operations Factbook

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Introduction 2

Wind energy basics 3

Wind turbine technology description and economics 9

EC&R’s operations and maintenance strategy 25

Future of wind energy technology 38

Key facts on EC&R Wind 44

Picture taken at E.ON Offshore Project - Robin Rigg (United Kingdom, 2009)3 4

Windenergybasics

Interesting facts about wind Rules of thumb

Temperature• Wind turbines produce 11% more power at -10°C than at 20°C

Hub height• Average wind speed at 100 m can be up to 50% higher

than that at a height of 15 m

Wind energy• Energy of air through a 80 m diameter rotor at 21 km/h

equals the energy of a small car driving at 160 km/h

Wind speed• 10% increase in wind speed leads to about 33% more

generation

• Doubling of wind speed allows eight times higher power production

Blade length• 20% increase in length leads to a power increase of 44%

As the renewable energy source with the biggest growth and share in the energy mix, wind energy is a key pillar of a cleaner energy future. Since the creation of E.ON Climate & Renewables in 2007, E.ON’s wind portfolio has grown from 400 MW to more than 4.6 GW in 2013 . With this factbook, we aim to provide you with some insight into the science of wind turbine generation and technology, together with our operations and maintenance strategy at E.ON.

First, we address the basics of wind energy: Where does the wind come from? What makes a good site for a wind farm? Then we give an overview of wind turbine technology: How does a wind turbine work? What are the main components of a wind farm? Finally, we introduce our operations and maintenance strategy, and the main activities of E.ON Climate & Renewables.

Wind turbine technology is still in its infancy, and research and development is steadily undertaken to make wind energy more competitive by reducing capital expenditure, and operations and maintenance costs. We conclude with a selection of key facts about E.ON Climate & Renewables Wind: for example, did you know when the first E.ON wind turbine was built?

We have made every effort to create an interesting factbook. We hope that you will enjoy it, and that it will further stimulate your interest, and inspire you to learn more about wind energy. We welcome your comments and feedback.

Kind regards,

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Wind formation is a complex global system Coriolis effect, local effects and topography

How is wind converted into electricity? Physical principles

Good to know…• Wind is the movement of air, relative to the earth’s surface

• Wind is the result of an air pressure difference between two points, and the pressure difference is caused by differences in temperature

• The sun, by heating the earth’s surface, is the main contributor to the temperature difference and hence wind formation

Wind direction is mainly driven by three phenomena:

• Coriolis effect deflects the wind to the right in the Northern hemisphere and to the left in the Southern hemisphere. The earth‘s rotation means that wind direction is not straight from the equator (hot air) to the poles (cold air)

• Localeffects are influenced largely by the time of day. During daylight hours, land increases in temperature faster than water so air rises onshore and cooler air replaces it causing wind from water to land. The opposite occurs at night, when the land temperature falls quicker than that of the water

• Topography (land shape and features) influences the wind significantly. Obstacles such as trees and hills create turbulence, changing the wind speed and direction

Good to know…

Principle• Wind turbines extract kinetic energy from the air

• Conversion to rotational movement using blades

• Conversion to electrical energy with generator

Windenergy• Wind energy (E) of streaming air can be calculated as:

E = ½·m·v²

where m = mass of the air and v = air speed

Power• Power extracted by the turbine can be calculated as:

Pturbine = ½·ρ·π ·r² ·v³·cp

• The Power Coefficient (cp) is the efficiency or the proportion of kinetic energy extracted by the turbine. This is limited to a maximum of 0.59 as described by Betz law

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The earth‘s rotation is one of the main factors that influences wind direction

Wind turbines converting energy in the wind to electricity

Wind is influenced by the time of day and the temperature of sea and land

ρ = density of the air

r = radius of the rotor

v = air speed

cp = Power Coefficient

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Maximum turbine efficiency is 59.3% Betz law

Knowing site conditions is key to the selection of the right turbine technology and for determining actual availability

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Summarised derivation of Betz law in four steps

Did you know?• In 1919, the physicist Betz proposed a theoretical maximum to the amount of

energy that can be extracted from the wind. This maximum is 59.3%

• If 100% of the wind energy was extracted, then the air at the back of the turbine would be stationary. This would prevent further flow and hence no electrical energy could be generated

• Similarly, if the air leaving the trailing edge of the turbine remained at the same velocity as the air entering the turbine then no energy would have been extracted either

• The optimum situation is therefore that some, but not all, of the energy in the wind is extracted

• Current, conventional wind turbine designs are between 30 and 40% efficient so are not close to disproving Betz law

Good to know…• Site conditions influence the wind turbine model selection and the wind

farm design

• The best conditions for wind power are when the wind blows steadily without any turbulence

• During the development phase of a project, wind characteristics are measured on site by a ‘met mast’

• Wind turbines are categorised into six IEC1 classes ranging from I, II and III (wind speed), and A, B and C (turbulence)

• Turbine classes are determined by average wind speed, extreme 50-year gust, and turbulence

• Load factors, defined as the total electrical energy produced in reality compared with the maximum theoretical production, vary between 20% and 50% for wind farms

Specific site condition are determined by four factors

The speed of the wind is not the only criteria for identifying a good site

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Using basic equations and physical relationships, power extracted (p) can be related to power in wind entering turbine (p0).

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Good sites

Obstacles

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Power curves and Weibull distributions are essential for forecasting energy yield Wind analysis

Windturbinetechnologydescriptionandeconomics

Wind turbine technology developed significantly in size and height from 2001 to 2013Good to know…

• The Weibull distribution is a site specific, continuous wind speed distribution

• The power curve shows the electricity production across the entire wind speed range. It is specific for each wind turbine generator

• The Weibull curve and the power curve are combined to determine the power density at site hence the average load factor and the annual energy yield

• Energy yield is a measure of the amount of energy converted into electricity by a wind turbine/farm

• Wind turbines typically operate when the wind blows between 3 m/s (cut-in limit) and 25 m/s (cut-out limit)

• Anemometers and ultrasonic wind sensors, placed on top of the turbines measure, monitor and record the wind speed. This data is primarily used for the control and operation of the turbines

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1 The Weibull distribution shows the probability of each wind speed

2 The power curve shows the electricity generated at varying wind speeds

Project PicoGallo,Spain Bowbeat,UK SandBluff,USA LondonArray,UK

Technology Onshore Onshore Onshore Offshore

Year of 1st generation 2001 2002 2008 2013

Turbine type Made AE-46 Nordex N60 Gamesa G87 Siemens 3.6

Installed capacity 24.4 MW 31.2 MW 90 MW 630 MW

Turbine power 0.66 MW 1.3 MW 2.0 MW 3.6 MW

Rotor diameter 46 m 60 m 87 m 120 m

Hub height 45 m 50 m 78 m 87 m

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Onshore wind farms and capital expenditure break-down From wind turbine generator to the grid

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Offshore wind farms and capital expenditure break-down How does an offshore wind farm work?

Wind farm part Capital expenses1

Wind turbines 70%

Inter-array cables 7%

Substations 4%

Export lines 2%

Site access 7%

Construction work and foundation

10%

Total capital expenses for the construction of an onshore wind farm

Windturbine (50-55%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) Power of modern offshore wind turbines varies between 2 to 6 MW. EC&R is currently an owner of the biggest offshore wind farm in the world, London Arraywith a total installed capacity of 1000 MW

Foundations(10-15%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) There are four main foundation concepts for offshore wind turbines; their selection depends on seabed conditions, water depth and turbine size

Arraycables (5%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) Wind turbines are connected to the offshore substation via array cables. Cables are usually buried between 1 m and 3 m below the seabed

Electricaloffshore substation(5%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) The export voltage is increased by the substation which reduces the current and hence reduces losses

Highvoltage exportcables(5%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) Offshore substations are usually connected to shore with two export cables. This allows a large amount of electricity to be exported whilst also providingredundancy in case of one cable failing

Installationandlogistics(12-17%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) During construction, specialized vessels are required eg heavy lift and cable laying vessels

Onshoresubstation (3%oftotalcapitalexpenditure) The voltage is increased for a second time to between 130 and 400 kV before the connection to the electricity grid

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Array cabling

Offshore substation

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7 Onshore substation – grid connection point

IllustrativeOffshore wind turbines benefit from a stronger and steadier wind compared with onshore wind farms.

They can operate at full power up to 45% of the time.

• Windturbinegenerators Wind turbines transform wind energy into electricity. Turbines are usually clustered into rows in order to provide the optimum balance between availability and value for money

• Inter-arraycables Transport the electricity generated by the wind turbine to the substation or the grid (in absence of substation)

• Substations Use transformers to increase the voltage to reduce transmission losses

• Exportlines Transport the electricity from the wind farm to the grid

• Siteaccess New roads and road reinforcements

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Six main components contribute ~80% to turbine cost Wind turbine generator cost breakdown

Source: Vestas

Extracting energy from the wind Rotor and blades

Good to know...• In the most common wind turbine design, there are three blades. This design

is called three-bladed horizontal axis wind turbine:

− More blades improve efficiency only marginally

− Fewer blades increase rotation speed (noise) and material stress

− Gearbox and transmission size acceptable

• Rotor diameter varies normally between 70-140 m

• Commonly blades are made of fiber glass and carbon fiber and weight up to 13 t

• Those materials have good fatigue characteristics and the advantage of being lightweight, strong and inexpensive

• With a 164 m rotor (eg turbine model V164-8.0 MW), a turbine produces three times more energy than with a 90 m rotor (eg turbine model V90-3.0 MW)

Nowadays rotor blades dimension can be as big as football fields

Open air blades storage

And also...• Foundations add significant

cost, particularly offshore (jacket foundations at Alpha Ventus ~850 t of steel each)

• Logistics and assembly a major cost component offshore (~15-20%)

• 23% Blades

• 13% Gearbox

• 13% Generator

• 5% Converter

• 4% Transformer

• 25% Tower

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Ensuring that most of the wind energy is captured Pitch and yaw system

Translating the power from rotor to generator Drive train

Pitch system• The pitch orients the rotor blades in order to capture the maximum wind

energy and protect the turbine against high speed wind

• The pitch system is also the main brake for the wind turbine

Æ Pitch offset’s effect on wind turbine generation1

− a 1° offset can decrease energy yield by 1%

Yaw system• The yaw orients the rotor to face into the wind

• The wind direction is continually monitored by sensors at hub height

Æ Yaw offset’s effect on wind turbine generation2:

− 10° offset leads to 6% decrease in power

− 20° offset leads to 17% decrease in power

Schematic representation of pitch and yaw systems

3D bottom view of a yaw system3

Good to know...• There are two main types of drive trains:

1 Drive train with gearbox

2 Drive train without gearbox (also direct drive)

• In most wind turbines the drive train is made of the mainshaft and the gearbox

• The mainshaft connects the blades and the gearbox/ generator. It rotates at the same speed as the rotor

• The gearbox increases the rotation speed of the rotor according to generator requirements

Wind turbine in a workshop being inspected

Drive train with gearbox

Advantages• Less expensive generator

• Generators able to operate at 1500 rpm (more common)

Considerations• Failure of gearbox possible with high cost impact

Æ This is the most common design

Drive train without gearbox

Advantages• No gearbox (15% of turbine costs)

• Increased reliability due to reduced moving parts

Considerations• Full converter and sophisticated control needed to

compensate low generator speed

• Complete rotor removal in case of component failure in highly integrated system

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Providing sophisticated control for the modern turbines Converter

Converting the energy in the turbine rotation to electrical energy Generator

Good to know...• Electricity is produced when a magnetic field rotates

within the stator (the static part of the generator)

• The different generator concepts produce this magnetic field in different ways but ultimately produce electricity using the same principles

A generator works in the same way as a wire moving in a magnetic field

Doubly fed induction generator

Advantages• Cheaper than permanent magnet designs

• Doubly fed induction generators are a common and well proven technology

Considerations• Gears are usually required, leading to potential failure

and maintenance costs

Æ This is the most common design

Full converter with permanent magnet

Advantages• No excitation losses

• Used with full converter for greatest grid support capabilities

Considerations• Rare earth materials needed for the magnets are not

abundant and their cost is volatile

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Good to know...• Converters are power electronic devices that are used to

control the output power of a wind turbine generator

• Converter technology is evolving all the time but they remain a complicated and expensive component

Power converter for wind turbine application

Partially rated converter

Advantages• Allows compliance with most network codes

• Cheaper than a full converter for same turbine output

Considerations• Double fed Injection generators can not always comply

with all grid codes

Æ This is the most common design

Full converters

Advantages• Protect the turbine from mechanical shocks caused by

electrical faults on the grid

• Enable turbines to provide better support for the grid than the other concepts

Considerations• Are expensive and complicated, especially for higher powers

Æ This is becoming increasingly popular

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The generator is a single point of failure and makes up 10% of the turbine cost for a conventional drive train

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Standing tall in the harshest conditions Tower

No single foundation type is suitable for all site conditions Onshore foundations

Good to know...• Steel towers have been the preferred option for wind turbines so far

• However, towers close to and exceeding 100 m tall can suffer from a resonant frequency problem, which usually is mitigated via the controller

• Designing out this problem is causing huge increases in tower costs for larger turbines, since the diameter can’t exceed 4.5 m (approx) due to transportation restrictions

• Hybrid solutions (concrete and steel) do not suffer from the same resonance problem, and are therefore a possible solution for taller turbine design

• Novel solutions are in development, eg steel towers with shell segments, which enables transportation even when more than 6.5 m in diameter, since the circumference is made by multiple shell segments

Steel wind turbine tower

Section of concrete wind turbine tower being lifted into place Spread foundation Skabersjö site in Sweden Foundation during construction

Good to know...• The foundation has the role of counter balancing the bending moment produced by the wind

• It is the link between the tower and the ground

Spread foundation• consists of a big plate to spread the loads to the ground

• weights up to 1000 t and is up to 5 m deep

• made exclusively of reinforced concrete

• must withstand tension and shear stress

ÆAdapted for strong and stiff soils ie soil with low elasticity

1 Piled foundation• is similar to the spread foundation with additional piles

into the ground

• can reach up to 40 m in depth

• ensures a good connection between the foundation plate and the piles for the distributing the loads

ÆAdapted for soft soils ie soil with high elasticity

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Offshore foundations create more challenges than onshore foundations leading to more complex technical solutions

Increasing the voltage to reduce losses Onshore transformers

Good to know...• Water depth and consistency of the seabed determine the choice of foundation. So far, there is no universal foundation

type suitable for all kinds of seabed conditions

• With a share of 75% in 2011, monopile foundations were the most commonly used foundation type, followed by gravity foundations with a share of 21%

• Significant research and development are still necessary to develop a more cost-efficient concept for production at industrial scale (See section “Future of wind energy technology”)

• Steel structure

• Max. water depth = 25 m

• Limited to 3.6 MW turbines

• Most used foundation

• Re-enforced concrete

• Max. water depth = 30 m

• Suitable for 5 MW turbines

• Good experience

• Heavy steel structure

• Max. water depth = 35 m

• Suitable for 5 MW turbines

• Little experience

• Laterace steel structure

• Max. water depth = 45 m

• Suitable for 5 MW turbines

• Little experience

Good to know...• Transformers are found in the wind turbines themselves and in substations

• They are used to increase the voltage of the exported electricity which reduces losses and increases overall energy efficiency

• Usually, each turbine has its own small transformer and these are then connected to a central substation

• The substation increases the voltage for a second time using another larger transformer, which transforms the electricity from multiple turbines to the transmission voltage

• The harsh conditions that wind turbines often operate in are undesirable for dry-type transformers, the type found within turbines. This presents unique challenges

• In the future, transformers may not be needed for each and every turbine if the voltage at which the electricity is generated is increased. This could reduce capital expenditure for a wind farm

Substation transformer 30/132 kV at Sierra de Tineo (Onshore wind farm Spain)

Circuit breaker at Roscoe‘s substation transformer

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Increasing the voltage to reduce losses Offshore substation transformers

Transporting electricity is much more complicated than you may have thought Offshore cables

Good to know...• A substation increases the WTG array voltage (ca. 33 kV) to transmission

voltage (>132 kV) in order to lower losses

• It is located offshore because the losses and cost of cables from the WTG to an onshore substation would be prohibitive or simply physically not possible

• E.ON has unmanned substations so living accommodation is not required for personnel on the platform

• Depending on the seabed conditions and depth a monopile, jacket, tripod or gravity foundation would be used

• Generally, due to the size of offshore wind farms, two transformers are installed and some redundancy or increased reliability is provided

Offshore substation at Robin Rigg

Offshore substation at London Array

Good to know...• Submarine power cables transport the wind farm energy production to the shore

• The diagram above describes a typical submarine power cable and the functions of the cable elements

CopperoraluminiumconductorswithlongitudinalwaterbarrierFunction: Carry current

Inner-andoutersemiconductorlayersFunction: Spread electrical stress evenly

FibreopticcablesFunction:Provide communication between wind turbines/substation(s) and the onshore control room

AluminiumfoilFunction: Radial water barrier

Outerhigh-densitypolyethylenesheathFunction: Mechanical protection of the single cable cores

Crosslinkedpolyethylene(XLPE)insulationFunction: Electrical separation between conductors and ground

CopperwirescreenFunction: Carry short-circuit current/equalizing electrical stress/gathers leakage and capacitive current

WaterswellingtapeFunction: Longitudinal water barrier

CablefillerelementsFunction: Maintains the stability of the cable geometry

Beddinglayers/galvanizedsteelwiresfilledwithbitumencompoundFunction: Protect cable from mechanical damage during installation and operation

OuteryarncoveringFunction: Maintain the corrosion protection of the steel armouring during installation

Diameter: 123 mm

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Feeding in the electricity into the grid Connection to the grid

EC&R’soperationsandmaintenancestrategy

EC&R currently owns a portfolio of more than 4.8 GW renewables capacity across Europe and North AmericaGood to know...

• Electrical energy is transmitted from the wind farm to consumer via an electrical network or grid

• The substation is the connection point of the wind farm to the grid

• During the development of a wind farm, the developer will obtain a grid connection agreement from the network operator

• Wind turbines are becoming increasingly capable of supporting the grid, reducing the need for additional reactive compensation which is expensive

• Due to increasing wind capacity and intermittency of production, grid congestion becomes more frequent causing curtailment of wind farms

• Improving the integration of wind power is a key element for making energy of the future cleaner and better

Simplified view of the connection from the turbine to the grid

Wind turbines in the energy landscape

Nacelle

Wind currents

Electricity

Power substation

TransformerNational grid power lines

Key facts• Assets with 4,831 MW total capacity

• 12.3 TWh electricity produced in 2012, equivalent to demand of 3m homes1

• Global #8 in onshore wind

• Global #3 in offshore wind

• Active in 11 countries

• 862 employees, 31 nationalities

Headquarter

Office location

Capacity (MW) Onshore wind

Offshore wind

Other

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Our wind portfolio: A diversified young fleet and with industrial size Besides CAPEX reduction, lower OPEX and increase energy yield also contribute to make wind power more competitive

Strategy• We focus on developing, building and operating industrial-scale projects in the US and in Northern Europe

• We aim to accelerate our capital rotation through portfolio measures and partnership models

• OnshoreUS: We aim to develop 400 MW new capacity per year on average, of which we build 200 MW ourselves

• OnshoreEurope: We aim to develop 240 MW new capacity per year on average, of which we build 150 MW ourselves

• Offshore: We aim to develop and build 150 MW offshore wind capacity per year on average

Fleet age11-25 years

0-2 years

3-5 years

72%

6-10 years

ÆMore than 2/3 of our wind capacity has been commissioned in the last 5 years

Turbine manufacturer

91%

Others

Manufacturer A

Manufacturer B

Manufacturer CManufacturer D

Manufacturer E

ÆMore than 90% of our wind capacity consists of 5 wind turbine manufacturers

Fleet size

56%

Below 10 MW

Between 10-25 MW

Between 25-50 MW

Above 100 MW

Between 50-100 MW

ÆMore than 50% of our wind capacity consists of wind farms with an installed capacity above 100 MW

ÆWe pursue ambitious targets to reduce the wind power generation costs

LCOE structure: Example onshore wind LCOE reduction measures

CAPEX:• Alternative suppliers, eg from Asia

• Fit-for-purpose design, new tower materials

• Major potential in hardware costs

• Standardized, integrated design approach

OPEX:• O&M contract modules and 3rd party providers

• Predictive and smart maintenance

• Hands-on O&M service concepts

• SCADA Smart EC&R/EC&R Control Rooms

• Global spares framework/global warehousing

• Best practice sharing across whole fleet

• Global benchmarking and global steering of fleet

Energyyield:• Best location for turbine (micro-siting)

• Higher availability

• Improved average performance

LCOE (€/MWh)

CAPEX 70%

30%OPEX

O&M strategy outlook in following pages

We aim to reduce onshore wind LCOE by 25% and offshore wind by 40% by 2015

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O&M costs account for ~ 60% of total OPEX1

This is what we can influence through our O&M strategyO&M strategy: Our key beliefs and rationale for future active management of “our” assets

Good to know...• The term Operational Expenditure (OPEX) covers all activities during the operational life of a wind farm

• WTG service contracts, maintenance and inspection represent the main O&M costs

• EC&R aims to break these costs up into different contractual modules

• Unscheduled maintenance eg repair of major components that fail unexpectedly has a significant impact on O&M costs

Key beliefs• We believe in the capabilities of our own in-house expertise and technicians

• Our own O&M capability is already high and we are aiming to gain even more knowledge

• We will take on more responsibility as an active asset manager

• With our operational experience, we will provide support and input for project development, construction and procurement within EC&R

Rationale• We will build up in-house expertise throughout mixed/hybrid teams

• Our gained knowledge will allow us to choose self-performed O&M

• We can leverage our global fleet size and scale to share knowledge and capture greater benefits

• We will be more OEM independent

• Higher level of control over our own assets will allow us to increase our assets’ availabilities and drive down O&M costs in the long-run

IllustrativeOnshore – Annual Operational Expenditure (OPEX) split

Onshore – Annual Operations & Maintenance (O&M) cost split

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By applying active asset management, O&M cost can be significantly reduced

O&M strategic activities: Active asset management is applied throughout various initiatives within EC&R

O&M contract modules/ framework agreements and 3rd party providers

EC&R fleet engineers/best practice sharing

Unscheduled maintenance

model

Spares strategy/global spares framework

Warehousing concept

Fleet analysis and fleet performance

Energy Yield SCADA Smart EC&R EC&R Control Room

Hands-on O&M service concepts

(incl. mixed teams, self-performance)

Predictive maintenance/CMS

Smart maintenance

ÆWe will gain higher level of control to increase availabilities and drive down O&M costs significantly

Transition

COD

Cost

Years 2-5 Years 3-6 Year 25Warranty period Post warranty

EC&R active O&M approach

Hands-off approach (OEM dependent)

Main cost driver: Failure rate/spare

replacement

Under warranty: no or only minor repair costs

attributable to operator

Yr. 3 to 6: first major components failures with cost attributable

to the operator, mainly smaller components

Yr. 4 to 7 until 25: more components fail including main components (gearbox, generator, blades, frequency converters)

Initially more expensive due to

additional internal O&M activities, staff

training cost

Only slight year-on-year increase for post-warranty life (20 years). Increased cost control through:

O&MInitiative:•Modular O&M contracts•Smart maintenance•Competitive market penetration

ActiveO&Mapproach:•Mixed teams•Competitive market penetration

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O&M contract modules/3rd party O&M service providers and hands-on O&M service concepts

Condition based maintenance: Predictive maintenance and smart maintenance

Active asset management Active asset management

Concept ConceptRationale and benefit

O&Mcontractmodules/3rdpartyproviders:• Efficiency and transparency increase with standard

modular contract

• Customizing service modules to EC&R’s demand by being able to contract only required modules

• Supporting market penetration by contracting different modules to different suppliers including 3rd party providers

Hands-onO&Mserviceconcepts:• Build-up internal O&M know-how via mixed teams

• In-source O&M activities for suitable sites

Rationale and benefit

Predictivemaintenance:• 4-steps-approach for meeting EC&R’s global predictive

maintenance strategy ensuring lowest cost operations

Smartmaintenance:• Challenging and optimizing maintenance manuals and

processes based on plant condition not time

• Using alternative tools and techniques (eg main shaft clamp, etc.)

ÆWe are significantly increasing transparency in O&M contracts and service ÆWe drive for condition based instead of time based maintenance

Joint scheduled maintenance with OEM’s and EC&R’s

technicians

Full service contract (As-Is)

Modular contract (Target)

Risk based monitoring

Example %of Sites*

10

25

75

100

Advanced CM1

Condition monitoring

Oil analysis

Oil analysis

Condition monitoring

Advanced and risk based monitoring

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EC&R fleet engineers/best practice sharing and unscheduled maintenance model

Spares strategy/global spares framework and warehousing concept

Concept ConceptRationale and benefit

Bestpracticesharing:• EC&R internal global engineers’ pool structured along

OEM technology (ie Technical Fleet Managers for Vestas, GE, Siemens etc.)

• Global Operators’ Forums on bi-monthly basis to exchange knowledge/experiences and to decide on operational issues

Unscheduledmaintenancemodel:• Establishing a global unscheduled maintenance model

to apply common forecast approach across the fleet

• Derivation of risk assessment, cost comparisons, spare parts supply needs, etc.

Rationale and benefit

Sparesstrategy/globalsparesframework:• Frameworks with 3rd party suppliers and parts-OEMs

• Implementation of global framework agreements for strategic spare parts (eg gearboxes, etc.)

Warehousingconcept:• Elaboration on where central warehouses are needed

and where not (esp. offshore and in onshore US sites)

• Assessment on the safety stock level of spares and cluster between strategic components, general spares and consumables

ÆWe globally steer our fleet by turbine technologies and harvest our knowledge ÆWe leverage our global fleet size and scale to share knowledge and capture greater benefits

EC&R internal global structure of fleet

engineersHubs at stock

Small warehouse at Northern European Onshore site

Central warehouse concept for big components in

Southern Europe

Examples of EC&R’s unscheduled maintenance tools

Active asset management Active asset management

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Fleet analysis: Fleet performance and energy yield SCADA Smart EC&R and EC&R Control Room

Concept ConceptRationale and benefit

Fleetanalysisandfleetperformance:• Analysis of our assets on a fleet-wide basis to

continuously identify low performing turbines

• Delivery of fleet-wide common reporting, analysis expertise and services

Energyyield:• Increase availability and efficiency improvements by

modifications and upgrades

• Part of regular inspections to ensure that fleet operations is continuously improving

Rationale and benefit

SCADASmartEC&R:• Global OEM-independent SCADA system to ensure

efficient operation and control of the entire fleet

• Integration of all SCADA data onto one single Business Process Database

• Automated fleet-wide operational reports on yearly/quarterly/monthly/weekly basis

EC&RControlRoom:• 2 EC&R owned and operated control rooms- Coventry

for Europe and Austin for US sites- monitoring all EC&R operated sites

• Global real-time monitoring and control to realize full benefits of large-scale deployment

ÆWe analyze, benchmark and challenge the whole fleet to continuously improve our performance ÆWe make use of and aim to gain even more knowledge about our O&M capabilities

Active asset management Active asset management

Centralized SCADA system

EC&R North American Control Room in Austin

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Futureofwindenergytechnology

EC&R contributes to improve wind energy technology in its area of expertise Optimize & drive down O&M cost T&I project examples

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MotivationEC&R is working with Technology & Innovation (T&I) to make wind energy more competitive. Reducing cost is vital and both improving performance of existing assets as well as new types of assets, updates of existing wind turbine technologies or completely new wind energy concepts, can contribute significantly.

FocusEC&R and Technology & Innovation have a broad value and business oriented program with the main focus on where EC&R can bring its own expertise, for example:

Optimize & drive down O&M cost

Reduce CAPEX – eg novel offshore foundations

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Evolution of wind energy installed capacity in the world

Evolution of wind turbine sizeVariety of wind technologies from onshore to airborne

wind turbines Offshore structure and foundation affected by scour Advanced Condition Monitoring pre-commercial trial

Scour Prevention SystemSituation• Many offshore turbines are exposed to scour which causes structure instability

• Existing solution is rock dumping around the fundament but that is expensive and it needs to be done every 3-6 years

ComplicationThe existing solution, rock dumping, is costly, can cause wear on cables and scour tends to occur around the dumped area

ResolutionCar tires connected like a mat around the monopile can reduce the cost compared to the current solution

PotentialScour Prevention System has the potential to reduce lifetime cost significantly and lower carbon footprint in comparison with existing methods

Advanced Condition Monitoring (ACM)SituationACM has been developed and proven very beneficial for our CCGT fleet: this project is to test its applicability to wind turbines

ComplicationBenefits case needs to be proven under real operating conditions

ResolutionProvide a rationale for whether ACM should be applied generally across the fleet; and if so how

PotentialACM can help reducing unplanned unavailability

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Optimize & drive down O&M cost T&I project examples

Optimize & drive down O&M cost T&I project examples

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Pitch optimizationSituationOptimum energy yield of a turbine depends on a number of factors, a key one being correct blade pitch angle at a given air density, which varies seasonally

ComplicationOptimum yield conditions are only achieved at a few operational points during the year. For some turbines the pitch angle is referenced from a look-up table based on static air density calibrated at commissioning

ResolutionThe objective of the project is to increase the power output of the wind turbines by calculating new pitch tables specifically optimized for the site climatic conditions and recalibrating the turbines accordingly

PotentialOptimized pitch tables will increase energy yield as the turbine adapts its pitch strategy to the prevailing air density

Yaw optimizationSituationCurrently we rely on OEM anemometry to detect wind direction and misaligned yaw from inaccurate wind direction readings reduces turbine production

ComplicationThis project is to evaluate solutions to improve wind direction alignment using retro-fitted modifications eg LIDAR solutions

ResolutionIncrease energy yield of existing EC&R turbines by optimizing yaw using eg retro-fitted LIDAR solutions

PotentialImproving yaw alignment will increase the power output of existing turbines and reduce loads induced by turbulence

Predictive gearbox model (EOH1)SituationThe cost of wind turbine gearbox replacement, particularly off-shore is significant

ComplicationOur currently installed Conditioning Monitoring Systems (CMS) cannot forecast far in advance the likely failures in sufficient time to schedule replacement

ResolutionCreate a predictive failure models for wind turbine gearboxes based on Equivalent Operating Hours

PotentialIf we can predict gearbox wear/damage and replace prior to Class III and IV failure, E.ON can better schedule replacement campaigns

Pitch Optimization – Air Density Schematic view of the LiDAR

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Reduce CAPEX Novel offshore foundations

2 How big can a wind turbine become?

Keystone twisted Jacket Suction bucket Floating concepts

New offshore foundationsSituation• Offshore wind CAPEX needs to come down and foundations and their

installation represent a significant share

• With sites further from shore and deeper water the “standard options” - gravity and monopile - might not always be the optimal solutions

ComplicationMany novel ideas and concepts exist, but many are at early stages and some potentially lead to cost increases

ResolutionBuild confidence in and accelerate the development of the most promising options by conducting met mast scale demonstrations and, if successful, full scale demonstration

PotentialThe ambition is to be able to install wind farms further offshore to harness higher wind speeds and produce more electricity to a lower cost

Vestas V164 -8.0 MW model with a 164 m rotor diameter

The big question is: What will be the limit to wind turbine size increase?• Since the wind industry started to take off, there has

been a race to increase turbine size and power. With hub heights now well over 100 metres, this trend is still continuing

• Various companies have turbine designs of up to 10 MW but few turbines with capacity above 6 MW have been constructed up to 2012

• Larger turbines mean you do not need as many turbines for the same energy output allowing for cost reduction

• There will be a limit beyond which the costs and technical limits associated with building larger and larger turbines become prohibitive

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KeyfactsonEC&Rwind

Interesting facts about our wind business

Did you know?• EC&R has a presence in 10 countries

• EC&R operates almost 3,000 wind turbines

• Approximately 10,000 blades are regularly inspected

• The highest wind turbines of the EC&R fleet is 169 m high (blade included)

• The oldest EC&R wind farm was built in 1992

• EC&R owns and operates the world’s 2nd largest onshore cluster – Roscoe, Inadale, Champion and Pyron (782 MW)

• Jointly with partners DONG and Masdar, EC&R operates the world’s largest offshore wind farm – London Array (630 MW)

London Array, UK Roscoe, USA Scroby Sands, UK

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