Rumor has it that Vermont Finland can get a bit chilly in the winter, but central planners don’t worry about little things like that.
Finland’s wind power generation slumped to near standstill as an extended cold snap coated turbine blades with ice and forced operators to curb output, adding pressure to already high electricity prices.
Wind farms were producing at a tiny fraction of the Nordic nation’s installed capacity on Wednesday, according to grid operator Fingrid Oyj. Temperatures fell to around -20C (-4F) in western Finland’s Ostrobothnia region, where most of the country’s wind capacity is located.
That’s a handy reminder that boasts about installed capacity for wind power can be misleading. Capacity is one thing, production is another.
But back to Bloomberg:
The frigid spell is exposing a key vulnerability in Finland’s rapidly expanding wind fleet, much of which lacks blade-heating systems to prevent ice buildup.
“There are low fog clouds in Finland’s main wind power production area, roughly at the height of turbine blades, which are causing new ice to form,” said Pia Isolähteenmäki, an adviser at industry consultant Kjeller Vindteknikk Oy.
Even a thin layer of ice sharply reduces turbine efficiency and can damage equipment, prompting operators to halt production as a precaution. . . . [Emphasis added.]
Best technology ever.