Wind turbines are quietly becoming the fastest growing energy source in the world. The worldwide trend to green energy sources helps this new technology on its feet, since most countries support the installation of wind turbines.
Major wind farms ranging in size from a few megawatts to hundreds of megawatts are being proposed and installed in all parts of the world. In parallel with this increasing power of wind farms, the power of a single wind turbine tends to increase. Wind turbines with powers of up to 5 megawatts and more are in development.
As the penetration and size of wind farms increases, its impact on transmission grids requires a more thorough analysis and understanding. One demanding issue with wind farms is the stability of the grid. Therefore the installation of power quality products always has to be considered while planning and realizing a wind farm. In addition to the continuing trend to variable speed operation, wind farms can be operated as peak power plants (onshore and offshore). This calls for better control and more enhanced converter solutions.
ABB helps you to analyze the system, design a wind farm or a single wind turbine, and provides the necessary additional products for the installations.