New technology bolsters US output

Longer blades and taller towers are having a dramatic effect on wind project output in the US, according to the Department of Energy (DoE).

by Ros Davidson 23 August 2019

Fast improving US capacity factors are set for a further boost when turbines such as GE's Cypress start operating

The DoE's latest wind technologies market report, compiled by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, found an average capacity factor in 2018 of 42% for projects built since 2014.

By comparison, the wind farms that came online from 2004 to 2011 achieved an average of capacity factor of 31%, while those completed between 2008-2001 returned 24%.

The efficiency of the recently built projects has now pushed the US's total wind fleet's capacity factor to over 35% for the first time.

The average rotor diameter of US turbines has grown 135% in the past 20 years to 113 metres. Average hub heights have climbed by 54% in the same period to 86 metres.

Permit applications to the Federal Aviation Administration show taller and higher-rated turbines are on the way.

They include GE's 5.3MW Cypress turbine, with a rotor diameter of 158 metres and a hub height of over 160 metres.