German renewables developer VSB Group has begun the repowering of the Elster wind park in Saxony-Anhalt which will increase its output sixfold to 235 GWh annually on less than two-thirds of the original area.
Elster, located in the Lutherstadt-Wittenberg district, was commissioned in phases between 2000 and 2012 with a capacity of 30 MW. The wind park is composed of 57 turbines and now 50 of them will be replaced with 16 new SG 6.6-155 machines from Siemens Gamesa with a rated capacity of 6.6 MW each. The repowering will more than triple the wind farm’s capacity to 105.6 MW. This will make the plant capable of generating power enough for 67,000 three-person households.
The start of construction works on the project follows a planning and approval phase that lasted several years and the dismantling of the 50 old turbines. The installation of the foundations is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2023. The repowered wind farm is slated to go online in the summer of 2024.
