Vermont-based Northern Power Systems Corp. has confirmed that its wind turbines performed up to par through both Hurricane Matthew in the Caribbean, as well as Typhoon Chaba in the Jeju region of South Korea.
Northern Power says its turbines at Over Yonder Cay in the Bahamas have now performed through three hurricanes without damage. Most recently, they experienced winds of over 135 miles per hour and at least one direct lightning strike – with no damage sustained.
Throughout the hurricane, the turbines performed as designed: shutting down in high winds and restarting when conditions were safe – all without human intervention, says Northern Power.
During the same time frame, six Northern Power turbines were performing during Typhoon Chaba on three separate islands off the southern coast of South Korea.
According to the company, the Jeju region was one of the areas worst affected by the typhoon. On Gasa-do, Geocha-do and Jeju-do the turbines performed as designed and did not sustain damage through winds of over 75 miles per hour.
“Having seen the Northern Power turbines perform through previous hurricanes, we were confident to operate the turbines through Hurricane Matthew,” said Gordon Scott Metcalf, renewable energy engineer at Over Yonder Cay. “The turbines performed perfectly and helped us repower the island immediately once the wind speed dropped to within the usable limits. The Northern Power service team was in constant contact with us ensuring that any support, if it had been needed, was available.”
