At the Winter Wind conference in Sweden, Vestas Wind Systems A/S introduced an advanced anti-icing solution to boost the business case for wind-power plants in cold climates by removing ice (built up on the blades) that would otherwise reduce the turbines’ energy output.

Vestas Anti-Icing System (www.vestas.com) is based on electro-thermal heating elements embedded in the laminate directly below the blade’s surface.

The control system includes different operational modes, allowing the heating elements to separately create the optimal heating level, increasing effectiveness and minimising energy consumption; this results in fast and targeted anti-icing action tailored to the specific situation.

The system is designed to operate both in rotation and standstill. In most common icing conditions, it ensures a minimum of 90% production retention.

Brian Daugbjerg Nielsen, senior product manager, said: “The Vestas Anti-Icing System significantly increases the potential for wind production in many cold climate locations, where the risk of icing has constrained the otherwise excellent wind resources.

"Leveraging our technological leadership, the anti-icing system will provide substantial value to customers who want to maximise the wind power potential in colder climates with icing risk”.

In addition to its Anti-Icing System, the company introduced its Vestas Ice Assessment tool, which uses weather models and algorithms to ensure an accurate and precise ice assessment down to turbine level.

With the introduction of these two new solutions, Vestas now offers the widest portfolio of cold-climate solutions in the industry.