April 25, 2012
Germany

Loose connection sparked V112 turbine blaze, says Vestas

Ben Backwell, London, Recharge, www.rechargenews.com 25 April 2012

Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas says it has identified the root cause of a fire in one of its V112-3.0 MW machines in Germany at the end of March.

After an investigation, the company found that the fire started in the turbine’s Harmonic Filter Cabinet as a result of a loose connection in the electrical system that created an arc flash.

“The solution to this problem has been confirmed by specialists. It involves using a different type of washer on the electrical connections in the Harmonic Filter Cabinet,” Vestas says, adding that the solution is in the process of being implemented in the affected turbines and customers are being informed.

Vestas is still awaiting reports from two external experts who worked side-by-side with its own investigators. These are expected within “a few weeks”.

“Vestas is confident that this final conclusion will be confirmed,” it says in a statement.

At the site of the blaze – the 51MW Gross Eilstorf project in Lower Saxony – the burned nacelle has been replaced and is scheduled to be commissioned next week.

A small number of other machines were halted while the inquiry was held. Most of the paused V112 turbines have been restarted or are in the process of being restarted.

“As we return the paused turbines to normal operations, we have used the opportunity to reschedule and move forward on already-planned upgrades,” says Vestas, adding that these are not related to the root cause of the incident.

“We are taking the opportunity to do as much work as we can on the turbines to minimize any future inconvenience to our customers,” Vestas says. It still expects all of the paused turbines to be returned to normal operation by the end of the month.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/04/25/loose-connection-sparked-v112-turbine-blaze-says-vestas/