GE’s 1.7-100 wind turbine (Credit: General Electric)
GE’s renewable energy business announced 1 gigawatt (GW) of new U.S. wind turbine orders following the ruling of the production tax credit on January 1, 2013. Once installed, these turbines will supply 1 GW of energy to the electrical grid across the United States. This equates to enough cleaner energy to power 330,000 U.S. Homes (according to the EIA, an average U.S. household uses energy at a rate of 1.29 KW, an average of 940 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per month) and taking more than a million cars off the road.
“We’ve had incredible response from customers following the introduction of our brilliant wind turbine platform and game-changing short-term energy storage capabilities,” said Anne McEntee, vice president of GE’s renewable energy business. “I’m thrilled to be joining the wind industry and look forward to driving GE’s technology leadership further in this space.”
In conjunction with this news, GE is pleased to debut the newest addition to its wind turbine portfolio.
GE’s 1.7-100 meter wind turbine is the second brilliant wind turbine in its portfolio. The 1.7-100 advances its 1.6-100 wind turbine series by using electrical system upgrades and the power of the Industrial Internet, which works to connect data points across the turbine’s ecosystem. As the most efficient wind turbine in its class, the 1.7-100 provides 6 percent more power than GE’s current model and allows for higher energy capture in lower wind speed environments.
Earlier this year, GE announced its 2.5-120 wind turbine, the world’s most efficient high-output wind turbine and GE’s first brilliant wind turbine. GE’s brilliant wind turbine platform helps manage wind’s variability through providing short-term predictable power while communicating seamlessly with neighboring turbines, service technicians and operators.
Last week, GE announced that Invenergy will install three 2.5-120 wind turbines with integrated energy storage at its Mills County, Texas, wind farm. The 2.5-120 is the first wind turbine to incorporate short-term battery storage as part of the complete turbine package. GE’s engineers have created three battery-enabled software applications that integrate seamlessly with the turbine to provide enhanced wind power availability. Wind developers and operators can select the application or combination of applications that best suits individual site needs.
