Boston-based WindESCo, an Industrial Internet of Things (IIot) company dedicated to substantially increasing revenue for wind farm operators, has inked its biggest deal yet, a contract with Longroad Energy for a 145 MW wind farm.
Longroad Energy, a renewable energy developer also based out of Boston, will use WindESCO’s WeBoost solution for the Milford Wind Corridor 1 project in Utah.
Tackling performance degradation issues caused by yaw misalignment, WindESCo’s unique solutions combine smart sensing, edge computing and data science for operating wind farms.
According to the company, existing hardware-based solutions for performance degradation issues are not cost-effective, even at scale. However, by integrating SCADA-based yaw misalignment detection into its WeBoost offering, WindESCo says it provides an accurate, cost-effective and scalable solution that improves annual energy production (AEP), reduces major component failures, increases component lifetime and offers real-time feedback for making improvements.
The company says its solution not only increases AEP but also quantifies energy improvement accurately to help owners assess the effectiveness of the WeBoost solution. If it were applied to all operating wind farms worldwide, the solution could increase revenues by $2 billion annually, the company claims.
“WindESCo approached us with a unique value proposition for increased revenue through their WeBoost offering,” says Paul Gaynor, CEO of Longroad Energy. “With this technology, we expect to increase revenues within a matter of months and see an immediate return on our investment. We are looking forward to working closely with WindESCo on this project and in the future.”
“We heard the industry’s feedback and applied our resources to find a cost-effective and scalable solution to yaw misalignment detection,” says Mo Dua, founder and CEO of WindESCo. “Along with other features under development and testing, we expect WeBoost to deliver a four to eight percent increase in energy output for operating wind farms. When combined with our WeProtect and WeExtend solutions, we expect to have a significant impact on the economics of wind farms through operational efficiencies. Longroad Energy recognized our value proposition, and we look forward to delivering value for them.”
With the new deal with Longroad Energy, WindESCo says it has transitioned from pilot projects to full, utility-scale integration. The company expects to make more project announcements in the coming months.
