The largest WES in the world

1. Gansu Wind Farm (Wind Power Plant Gansu)

The project of the Gansu Wind Power Plant (base for wind power plants in Zhuquan) represents a group of large-scale wind energy stations, located on the west coast of the province of Gansu in China, at the edge of the Gobi Desert.

The project to build the wind park is one of six national megaprojects in the field of wind energy approved by the Chinese government. According to the original plan, it was expected that by 2020 the installed capacity would be about 20,000 MW at an estimated cost of US$17.5 billion. As of 2022, the installed capacity of the Gansu Wind Park is slightly over 10 GW, however, the actual used power is 7,965 MW.

Low utilization of WES is due to the following factors:

• the wind farm is located far from large electricity consumers;
• the cost of electricity from WES is higher than the price of electricity from local coal-fired TPPs;
• lack of infrastructure and transmission lines that would allow transferring electricity to large consumers.

For example, according to estimates by China's National Bureau of Statistics for Energy, in 2015 the Gansu Wind Park was not used for 39% of the time despite having sufficient wind for operation. To increase the efficiency results of WES a number of engineering solutions were adopted:

• "Coordinated management system for wind energy" introduced to regulate the power output of the wind farm. This allowed producing 1 GWh more electricity per day than before, and significantly increased the stability of the system;
• a line of direct current transmission from Zhuquan - Hunan with a length of 2383 km, connecting WES to the electrical grid of the province of Hunan, which allows increasing the use of produced electricity.

2. Hornsea Wind Farm (Hornsea WES)

As of April 2023, Hornsea Wind Farm is the largest offshore wind farm in the world. The WES is located in the North Sea near the coast of Yorkshire, UK.

Hornsea Wind Farm consists of four large-scale wind parks:

• Hornsea Project One (commissioned). This was the first offshore wind farm in the world with a capacity exceeding 1 GW. The wind park occupies an area of 407 square kilometers and consists of 174 Siemens Gamesa SWT-7.0-154 turbines, each with a unit installed power of 7 MW. The total installed capacity is 1218 MW;
• Hornsea Project Two (commissioned). The station is located approximately 89 km from the coast of Yorkshire, occupying an area of 462 square kilometers. The wind farm consists of 165 Siemens Gamesa 8.0-167 DD turbines with a nominal power of 8 MW. The rotor diameter is 167 m;
• Hornsea Project Three (project development underway). Planned capacity of the wind park will be 2.4 GW, located on an area of about 696 square kilometers. The estimated completion date is 2025.

3. Markbygden Wind Farm (Markbygden Wind Farm)

The Markbygden Wind Farm consists of a network of interconnected onshore wind farms in the area of Markbygden west of Piteå in northern Sweden.

The project for the wind farm is divided into three major phases and two experimental projects, which include:

If the construction of the Markbygden Wind Farm is completed, it will become one of the largest in the world. The wind park will consist of 1,101 wind turbines (such a number of turbines has been approved at the project development stage). The total cost of the project is estimated at $6.9 billion USD. The area occupied by the wind farm will be about 450 square kilometers and will produce up to 12 TWh of electricity per year.

4. Alta Wind Energy Center (Alta Wind Energy Center)

The Alta Wind Energy Center, also known as the Alta wind power station, is the third largest onshore wind energy project in the world. The wind farm has an installed capacity of 1548 MW (with a planned increase to 3000 MW) and will be the largest wind power plant in the United States.

The Alta Wind Energy Center is located in the Tehachapi Mountains in Kern County, California. The wind farm is situated just two miles from the Tehachapi Pass WRA, which consists of wind farms built in the 1970s and 1980s.

The project for the Alta Wind Energy Center includes the installation of up to 600 wind turbines. As of now, the wind farm consists of 11 large wind farms that are combined into one generating unit.

5. Muppandal Wind Farm (Muppandal Wind Farm)

The Muppandal Wind Farm is the largest operating onshore wind farm in India. This project is located in the Kanyakumari district, state of Tamil Nadu.

The implementation of the project began in 1986. As of today, the wind farm includes around 3000 wind turbines with a unit power ranging from 200 kW to 1650 kW. The wind park comprises different types of turbines and manufacturers, such as Enercon, NEG Micon, Suzlon, and Vestas, since the wind farm does not have a single owner, and the turbines are owned by both large financial companies and local farmers.

Since the wind park has been operating for four decades, some of the turbines have already reached their warranty period and require restoration or replacement work. However, local farmers who own part of the turbines do not have the financial means to carry out such works. At the same time, using outdated models of WES does not allow for maximum utilization of wind resources in this area. According to studies conducted at this station, the capacity factor for outdated turbines is less than 20%, while for new models of WUS KIUM reaches 45%. Therefore, municipal authorities are currently developing mechanisms for reconstructing the wind park with consideration of the interests of interested parties.