HomeNaples, Italy, 31 August 2017 – EWT, the world’s leading turbine supplier for localized energy generation, has followed recent contract signings in Italy with the successful installation of its first turbine.
The DW61 900kW wind turbine has been installed at Montefalcone di Val Fortore for Gaia Renewable Energy; an energy services company leading in the development of plants for production of energy from renewable energy sources in Italy.
Gaia’s decision to select EWT was based on a combination of superior site suitability and output, coupled with the attractiveness of EWT’s direct drive technology.
“EWT is a natural fit for the Italian market, both today and in the future, and so our first contracts and first installation represent important milestones. We are very pleased to take that step with Gaia” stated Mark Jones, CEO of EWT.
This project was part of the GSE register, the Italian feed in scheme, that went public end of November 2016. End of February 2017 EWT signed the contract with Gaia Energy and started the project preparation mid-July. “EWT was capable of bringing in the technology, flexibility, critical output levels and reliability that was needed for this project and due to this short delivery time EWT was the ideal fit”, says Francesco Nardi, owner of Gaia.
Installing the wind turbine faced some technical challenges, as the turbine is installed in a hilly location making the assembly space onsite very narrow and with high wind speed conditions in the area it was difficult to build the turbine up. EWT was well prepared for these challenges and also established excellent local infrastructure for a successful installation. In addition, EWT has established its own Operations and Maintenance team in-country to ensure the smooth running of this and other turbines which will be installed.
