1POTENTIAL FOR REDUCING COST OF ENERGY BY SCALING UP A LOW-MASS WIND TURBINE DESIGN

The cost of wind energy is a function of turbine size. Economies of scale are offset by a fundamental mass-driven diseconomy, resulting in an optimum point. The diseconomy is very dependent on turbine design, while the economies of scale are relatively independent. As a result a low-mass design will reach its optimum at a larger scale than a heavier design. With heavy designs achieving cost-reductions by scaling up to around 750 kW rating and larger, a low-mass design should achieve its optimum at 1000 kW or more. This paper illustrates this potential using the example of the two-bladed Windflow 500 design. Given the lean and mean economic climate for wind energy in New Zealand, it is timely to re-examine this concept