Fairfield’s General Electric Co. has purchased an upstate New York company’s technology that will make it possible to erect a new class of wind turbine towers taller than a 27-story skyscraper.
Financial terms of GE’s technology acquisition from Wind Tower Systems LLC in Schenectady, N.Y., were not disclosed.
GE said the need for taller, cost-efficient towers is becoming an important factor in the wind industry as blade lengths increase.
GE’s Hartford rival, United Technology Corp., also has optimistically staked out commercial ground in the development of wind-turbine technology, with its December purchase of Clipper Windpower in California for 382 million. Clipper makes turbines and other elements to create wind farms.
Wind Tower Systems has been working on the development of the space frame tower system technology for use at wind farm sites that require hub heights of 100 meters (328 feet) or more.
By comparison, the wind turbine at the Phoenix Press in New Haven — Connecticut’s only traditional wind turbine — is 37 meters tall (121 feet) at its hub.
Its towers are engineered to handle the static and dynamic loads generated by wind turbines.
The company also is working on innovative ways to transport and install these taller wind turbine towers. The space frame technology will use standard flatbed trucks. Hi Jack system technology can eliminate the need for heavy lift cranes during installation.
“We see great potential in the addition of this technology to our portfolio not only for our customers but also for the wind industry as a whole,” said Victor Abate, vice president-renewable energy for GE Power & Water. “Taller towers are an essential complement to longer blades. Longer blades capture more energy and in turn improve return on investment for wind farm developers.”
Plans are underway to install a prototype of the GE’s space frame tower system technology to test its design later this year, with commercial availability targeted for 2012.
