Flexible tower development as a project enabler

As part of ENERCON’s identity as a provider of solutions for the connected energy ecosystem, it is essential to remove obstacles that stand in the way of successfully implementing customer projects. In some regions, for example, there are complex height and distance limitations that prevent the use of standard towers from the product portfolio. Thanks to ENERCON’s flexible tower development, customers in such cases – assuming a positive economic assessment – can rely on competitive alternatives, as demonstrated by the example of the new 120meter hybrid steel tower for the flagship E175 EP5 E2 model.

The ‘Ostfriesland Tower’ was developed to meet the specific requirements of customers in ENERCON’s home region. Due to restrictive specifications from the German armed forces related to airspace surveillance along the coast, wind turbines around ENERCON’s headquarters may not exceed a maximum height (‘tip height’) of 218 meters above sea level. In addition, for nature conservation reasons, the distance between ground level and the lower blade tip position (‘lower tip height’) may not be less than 30 meters for new turbines – otherwise significant yield reducing shutdown periods may apply.

These specific requirements cannot be met by the standard towers of the E175 EP5 E2. An alternative solution was therefore needed. ‘We are talking about roughly 60 new turbines that we want to implement together with our customers in our home region,’ says Moritz Rodenhausen, Head of Product Management. ‘This scale ensures a positive business case for us as a manufacturer as well. Thanks to our flexible tower development, a rapid project specific tower design was completed and the “Ostfriesland Tower” was developed.’175 EP5 E2. An alternative solution was therefore needed. specific tower design was completed and the  

This tower is based on ENERCON’s hybrid steel tower technology, combining segments of the Modular Steel Tower (MST) – made of bolted, bent steel plates – with segments of a tubular steel tower (ST). It has a hub height of 120 meters. With this tower variant, the E175 EP5 E2 fits precisely within the height and distance restrictions defined by military radar and nature conservation requirements for Ostfriesland.

‘We are pleased to offer our local customers options that allow them to begin detailed planning of their wind farm projects,’ says Moritz Rodenhausen. ‘Our tower development team has further optimized and significantly accelerated its processes. This allows us to react even more agilely and flexibly to specific customer requirements.’

But the new HST tower will not be limited to the Ostfriesland region: ‘Since we are obtaining certification for the new tower according to IEC and DIBt standards, we automatically meet the certification requirements in many European countries – for example, the UK, Italy, Turkey, the Baltic states, Poland, Romania, Portugal, Austria, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Greece, and Ireland,’ says Maria-Josefa Brand, Tower Product Manager in ENERCON Product Management. ‘The “Ostfriesland Tower” will therefore also enable customers in other market regions to realize their onshore projects with our flagship model in the future.’

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