The Nordex Group has optimized the aerodynamics of the rotor blades of a total of 80 N100/2500 wind turbines for the long-standing Turkish customer, Eksim. By installing the vortex generators, the power output of the older generation turbines will be increased by up to 2%.
The Nordex Group offers its customers the vortex generator upgrade as an additional option for the N100 turbines from the company’s Gamma Generation with blades that were not previously equipped with this solution. The devices are installed on the top side of the blade – each individually adapted to the rotor blade type. The result is an increase of the annual energy production of the turbines due to the optimisation of the aerodynamics at the base of the rotor blades. The project comprising five wind farms in Turkey is the Nordex Group’s largest vortex generator upgrade project to date.
The Nordex Group worked closely with Eksim as early as the product development phase: As part of a pilot project, rotor blades of six N100/2500 wind turbines at the Susurluk wind farm in Turkey were already equipped with vortex generators in 2016. This blade performance enhancing upgrade has demonstrably increased the annual energy production of this wind farm by 2 per cent.
“As Eksim Investment Holding, we are continuously seeking for technical developments to increase energy output and efficiency of our portfolio. With this project of installing vortex generators to the blades of our N100 Gamma turbines, the aim was to increase energy output and it was decided, to implement the project in five different wind parks to 80 wind turbines. We are very pleased that the project had been managed professionally by the Nordex Turkey Service Teams and even completed earlier than the original planned date despite potential delays due to global Covid-19 pandemic. We would like to thank Nordex Turkey and the Nordex After Sales Teams for the collaboration, professionalism and determination during the planning and execution of the project”, says Sabahattin ER, General Manager of Eskim Investment Holding.
Vortex generators are an established and well-researched solution for an aerodynamically efficient rotor blade optimisation in order to maximize a wind turbine’s output and efficiency. In addition to the reduced costs of power generation, Nordex customers benefit from a high product reliability and a rapid on-site assembly by certified rope-access technicians.
The Nordex Group continually develops upgrades for its legacy fleet using the latest technologies from newer turbine generations. Rotor blades of the Group’s turbines of the Delta and Delta4000 Generation are serially equipped with Vortex generators.
Eskim Investment Holding – a profile
EKSIM Investment Holding has been following the renewable energy technologies over a decade by aiming to convert potential power of water and wind in Turkey into society’s benefit. As of today, total capacity of EKSIM’s renewable energy portfolio is 623 MW which consist of 461 MW Wind Energy and 162 MW Hydro Power Projects. In addition to energy production, EKSIM holds an Electricity Wholesale License obtained from EMRA which allows it to sale electricity to private sector companies as well as import and export electricity.
The Nordex Group – a profile
The Group has installed more than 29 GW of wind energy capacity in over 40 markets and in 2019 generated revenues of EUR 3.3 billion. The company currently employs a workforce of more than 7,900. The joint manufacturing capacity includes factories in Germany, Spain, Brazil, the United States, India, Argentina and Mexico. The product portfolio is focused on onshore turbines in the 2.4 to 5.X MW class, which are tailor-made for the market requirements of countries with limited space and regions with limited grid capacity.
