GE announced that it will supply Toto Costruzioni S.p.A. with eight of its GE 2.85-103 wind turbines

GE announced that it will supply Toto Costruzioni S.p.A. with eight GE 2.85-103 wind turbines for a wind farm in the Puglia region of Italy.

The wind farm operator is Ponte Albanito S.r.l., a special purpose vehicle company, which is owned 70 percent by Renexia S.p.A. (a Toto Holding company) and 30 percent by Banco Santander as minority stakeholder. The project marks the first time GE 2.85-megawatt (MW) wind turbines will be used in Italy and will be the sixth wind farm in Puglia to use GE machines.

Renexia and Toto Costruzioni are entering the wind industry for the first time and chose GE technology for its inaugural wind farm. The project was awarded to Toto Costruzioni under the new Italian wind auction system for assignment of incentive tariff. The new wind farm will provide 22.8 MW of power to the grid, which would be equivalent to the required energy needs of approximately 15,000 homes in the region.

“For our first foray into wind energy we were mindful of picking a provider with whom we can create the synergy needed to succeed in this arena. GE’s 2.85-103 wind turbines were best suited for the site conditions in Ponte Albanito and were the most economical and efficient in the industry,” said Michele Scoppio, chief operating officer, Renexia.

“The agreement with Toto Costruzioni signifies the debut of the 2.85 wind turbine in Italy. This wind turbine, with its 103-meter rotor, captures more energy with ultra-quiet power production,” said Cliff Harris, general manager for GE’s European renewable energy business. “In addition, often auctions tend to decrease incentives meaning it is even more important to have the most efficient wind turbines possible to bring more value to our customers.”

The wind farm will benefit from around-the-clock remote monitoring and diagnostics through GE’s global wind monitoring center in Salzbergen, Germany, which monitors wind turbines in Europe and Asia 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

As a member of the European Union (EU), Italy is required to meet the EU 20/20 target of having 20 percent renewable energy generation by the year 2020. To achieve these goals, Italy will be installing 560 MW of new wind generation capacity per year through 2020.

Established in 2011 to give the Renewable Energy Division of Toto S.p.A. (totoholding.it) a face of its own, Renexia (renexia.it) is responsible for the development, design and planning, construction and management of renewable energy plants in order to exploit this source. It is an efficient and flexible organization, divided into four units representing different skill areas, which allow it to operate in a large range of “green” energy markets from photovoltaics to wind power, from hydro-electrics to the latest applications in geothermal technology. The other companies belonging to the group have matured great experience as EPC contractors, allowing Renexia to use the same approach, which gives it complete control of the plant life cycle from the design phase through to maintenance.