Suzlon opens new blade science centre in Denmark

Suzlon Group, one of the leading global renewable energy solutions providers, today announced the opening of its new Blade Science Centre in Vejle, Denmark.

The centre is dedicated to accelerating Suzlon's vision to become a leader in technology in the wind industry, the company stated in a release.

The new centre will be focused on developing the best blades and control systems in the industry, and integrating Suzlon's aerodynamic, loads and new structures research across the company.

Dr Thomas Buhl from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) Wind Energy, has joined Suzlon as vice president to lead Suzlon's Blade Science Center. With more than 15 years of experience in aerodynamics and blade structures Dr Buhl has demonstrated strong leadership throughout his career.

At his last assignment, Dr Buhl headed the section for wind turbine structures at DTU Wind Energy where he managed a large group of scientists and engineers with a focus on mechanical design and loads, composite structures and structural optimisation.

''The new blade centre is aligned to our vision of being the technology leader in the global wind sector. Innovation is at the core of Suzlon's DNA and I am confident the new blade centre will give further impetus to our research and development efforts. We believe a new wave of innovation is required to unlock the true potential of renewable energy, to lower Levelised Cost of Energy (LCoE), and take the game to a new level. Technology will be the key enabler to achieve this,'' Tulsi Tanti, chairman of Suzlon Group, said.

''Denmark is the birthplace of wind technology and we will leverage the experience and expertise of the talent pool there in our innovation efforts as we develop our next generation of turbines,'' he added.

Speaking on the development, Duncan Koerbel, chief technology officer (CTO) said, ''We believe the new blade centre under the leadership of Dr Thomas Buhl will be the epicenter for developing next generation wind turbines. We will continue to accelerate our research into the next generation of air foils and  rotor systems to continue to reduce the levelised cost of energy (LCOE) and increase the plant load factor (PLF) for our customers.

''We have an aggressive series of new turbines for low wind sites planned for the Indian and international markets. Through technology, we will advance the performance of these machines with our fourth generation blades,  augmented with improved pitch control systems, and by introducing carbon fibre in a unique industry application. I am confident the team led by Dr Buhl will help advance research in all of these areas across our company.''

The Suzlon Group is one of the leading renewable energy solutions providers in the world with an international presence across 19 countries in Asia, Australia, Europe, Africa and North and South America.

With over two decades of operational track record, the Group has a cumulative installation of approximately 15GW of wind energy capacity, a  workforce of over 8,000, a low-cost manufacturing base and strong in-house R&D set-up in the US, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and India.

Approximately 9GW of the group's installation is in India, which makes up for ~37 per cent of the country's wind installations, making Suzlon the largest player in this sector. The company has recently forayed into the solar space. The group, headquartered  at Suzlon One Earth in Pune, is  comprised of Suzlon  Energy Limited  and  its subsidiaries.