Steel Winds

Clipper Windpower, a California-based wind turbine manufacturer, is in deep trouble with its top-of-the-line, 2.5-MW Liberty machine, which is experiencing quality control and apparent design problems, and with the company’s financial performance. The 20-MW Steel Winds wind farm in upstate New York, using eight of the Liberty turbines.

The present gear problems in Lackawanna were, I believe, predictable.  In my April 4, 2007 field report on Clipper’s Lackawanna installation I wrote: “My bet is that this complex gear train will have maintenance issues”.   And I do not believe the present Clipper gear problems will be fixed by re-manufacturing specific gears or gear teeth or changing gear surface hardness, gear lubrication, etc, etc.

The Aim-listed company, which sells turbines to the US market but is considering investing in offshore UK wind, said it would produce just 125 turbines in 2007, a figure at the lower end of expectations. It said it would only recognise revenue from eight machines. An extra 35 turbines due this year will not be commissioned until 2008 due to work needed on blades. The company plans to spend $15m (£7.6m) reinforcing all blades on existing machines.