Trends in wind power operations & maintenance

摘要

Currently, a major focus of OEMs is designing turbines that actually last 20 years. As their reliability increases, maintenance costs and downtime decreases. More than 50% of the national fleet is out of OEM warranty and that figure can only rise. The last decade saw a boom in newly installed turbines. These units have relatively low maintenance costs, regardless of who's footing the bill, and relatively high availability. However, looking at the lifecycle for a turbine shows that operations and maintenance costs for wind power typically double or triple projected costs. To correct this oversight manufacturers have begun offering extended service warranties, some as long as 10 years.