Hamburg/Germany, 25 July 2014 – As part of the installation phase at one of Africa’s largest wind farms Ashegoda in Ethiopia, DNV GL has inspected wind turbines of the French manufacturer Vergnet. DNV GL confirmed the compliance of the installed wind turbines with DNV GL’s A-Design Assessment. The wind farm shall help to reduce the occurrence of blackouts in Ethiopia. The country has some of the best wind resources in the world and has a fully developed plan to get up to about 7 GW of wind energy by 2030.
“Certification and design validation are essential for technically reliable wind turbines”, explains Mersudin Bajric, Project Manager for Renewables Certification at DNV GL. The A-Design Assessment comprises a thorough evaluation of the turbines, ensuring that they meet the requirements of DNV GL standards which addresses safety, quality and engineering integrity of the turbine, and verifies that wind turbines comply with standards in terms of its load assumptions and design.
“Ethiopia has basic infrastructures with a national electrical grid that is still in build-up phase. Ashegoda is situated in complex terrain at 2,200 to 2,500 m above sea level. This combination led to quite some organisational and technical challenges, which DNV GL helped to handle, “explains Ludovic Dehondt, Project Manager at Vergnet. The wind turbine inspections in Ethiopia took approximately two weeks and were accompanied by thorough investigation and assessment work. Vergnet’s 1 MW wind turbine is a two bladed turbine with a patented lowering system making it possible to lower down the upwind part of the nacelle without an external crane. The turbine addresses the specific needs of complex sites, especially for cyclonic areas.
DNV GL is constantly committed to develop the energy infrastructure in Africa and was recently selected to advice on 400kV Kenyan transmission line connecting one of Kenya’s biggest wind farms to the national grid. www.dnvgl.com/news-events/news/ketraco.aspx
About Vergnet
The Vergnet group is specialised in generating renewable energy from wind, solar and hybrid sources. On the strength of its unique technologies, the group developed the Hybrid Wizard, a hybrid system that coordinates, in real time, the supply of renewable energies that can be sent to the electricity grid while ensuring the operational safety and security of insular or isolated networks. The group has already installed 900 wind turbines and supplies water to over 50 million people worldwide. The group is active in nearly 35 countries and has 221 employees in 11 offices.
About DNV GL
Driven by its purpose of safeguarding life, property and the environment, DNV GL enables organisations to advance the safety and sustainability of their business. DNV GL provides classification and technical assurance along with software and independent expert advisory services to the maritime, oil & gas and energy industries. It also provides certification services to customers across a wide range of industries. DNV GL, whose origins go back to 1864, operates globally in more than 100 countries with its 16,000 professionals dedicated to helping their customers make the world safer, smarter and greener.
In the Energy industry
In DNV GL we unite the strengths of DNV, KEMA, Garrad Hassan, and GL Renewables Certification. DNV GL’s 3,000 energy experts support customers around the globe in delivering a safe, reliable, efficient, and sustainable energy supply. We deliver world-renowned testing, certification and advisory services to the energy value chain including renewables and energy efficiency. Our expertise spans onshore and offshore wind power, solar, conventional generation, transmission and distribution, smart grids, and sustainable energy use, as well as energy markets and regulations. Our testing, certification and advisory services are delivered independent from each other. Learn more at www.dnvgl.com/energy
