10 Dec 2021 INNOVATIVE 2-PIECE WIND BLADES ARE PRODUCED IN IZMIR IN GE’S LM WIND POWER PLANT
LM Wind Power, a subsidiary of GE Renewable Energy and one of the three companies producing wind turbine blades in Türkiye, helps the wind power plants in increasing the production capacity, with its two-piece wind blade. Türkiye’s first two-piece wind turbine blades are produced at the factory, which was opened in İzmir in 2017 by LM Wind Power. While the production capacity of the turbine is 3 megawatts, in which the company’s one-piece 63.7-meter-long blades are used, the capacity can be increased up to 5 megawatts with the 77-meter-long two-piece “Cypress Blades”.
Emre Kahya, Factory Manager of LM Wind Power, told that the LM Wind Power facility in İzmir is an investment of 80 million USD. Kahya noted that the facility was expanded in 2019 to produce innovative two-piece blades. Noting that the factory currently has two production lines, Kahya said, “However, these lines can be expanded to six in the existing area to serve our customers when necessary. As wind turbines grow and become stronger, we have incorporated some key innovations that allow us to keep up with this development. The longer the blades are, the more wind they can catch, increasing the energy generated and lowering the leveled cost of electricity.” he said.
Kahya stated that they are carrying out a localization strategy in creating a local supply chain for the main raw material in blade production, diversifying their supply centers, reducing the carbon footprint and logistics costs of their operations. Explaining that they are currently working with more than 10 Turkish companies for the main components in blade production, Kahya stated that 80 percent of the production is exported to countries such as Australia, Spain, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Morocco. Expressing that they expect this situation to continue in the coming years, Kahya added that nearly 100 turbines, most of which are Cypress platform, are in the operating phase and that they have increased employment by improving their facilities according to the ever-increasing demands.
