Vattenfall has started full operations at its Pen y Cymoedd wind farm in Wales.
The 228 MW onshore facility consists of 76 Siemens wind turbines installed in the upper Rhondda area and took 38 months to build, Vattenfall said. It is a key part of the company’s plans to triple its European wind capacity to 7 GW by 2025.
Pen y Cymoedd is Vattenfall’s largest land-based wind farm and will generate 700 GWh per year. The company is investing €5 billion in wind power over the five years to 2020.
An energy storage facility will also be built at Pen y Cymoedd using lithium ion batteries supplied by BMW Group.
“Energy storage and grid stability are the most important issues in the new energy world,” according to Gunnar Groebler, Head of Vattenfall Wind. “We want to use the plants where we generate renewable energy from renewable energy sources to drive the transition to a new energy system, and to facilitate the integration of renewable energy sources in energy systems with storage capabilities.”