Acciona Windpower has now installed more than 1 GW of wind power capacity using concrete tower technology.
The company says the technology enables higher hub heights for better energy production, as well as lower transportation and maintenance costs. Concrete towers also increase the local content and local economic impact of a wind power project, adds Acciona.
The company says its experience in concrete towers dates back 10 years, when its first concrete tower was installed with the AW1500 platform. The 3 MW platform includes models with hub heights of 100, 120 and 137.5 meters for wind turbines with rotor diameters of 100, 116, 125 and 132 meters, while its 1.5 MW platform utilizes 100-meter towers for rotor diameters of 77 and 82 meters.
To date, Acciona has installed a total of 1,045.5 MW of wind capacity using concrete towers; 924 MW (88%) with 3 MW turbines and the rest with 1.5 MW machines.
By countries, that capacity is shared between Brazil (411 MW), Mexico (225 MW), South Africa (138 MW), Spain (84 MW), Poland (63 MW) and the U.S. (3 MW) all with AW3000 wind turbines, whereas the company has also installed 121.5 MW with the AW1500 platform.
Acciona says it has completed additional orders for more than 800 MW of concrete-tower-mounted wind turbines worldwide, which will be installed between 2016 and 2018.
The company has opened two concrete tower production plants for wind turbines in Brazil and is currently preparing a third one in Rio Grande do Sul, which is due to enter service by February 2016. Additionally, Acciona notes it owns another plant in Mexico and is about to finish another one in India.
