GE Vernova: ‘Manufacturing Deviation’ Led to Vineyard Wind 1 Blade Failure; Earlier Incident at Dogger Bank A Caused by Installation Error

July 25, 2024, by Adrijana Buljan

The breakage of the blade on one of GE Vernova’s Haliade-X wind turbines at the Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm in the US was caused by a manufacturing deviation, the company’s CEO Scott Strazik revealed during an earnings call on 24 July. Strazik also pointed out that a blade event that happened on a Haliade-X turbine at Dogger Bank A in the UK this May was due to an installation error.

Following the blade failure at the Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm, currently under construction off Massachusetts, GE Vernova will reinspect all the offshore wind blades made at its factory in Gaspé, Canada, where the one that was installed on a Vineyard Wind 1 turbine was produced, according to Strazik.

“We have identified a material deviation, or a manufacturing deviation, in one of our factories that through the inspection or quality assurance process, we should have identified,” Scott Strazik said.

“Because of that, we’re going to use our existing data and reinspect all of the blades that we have made for Offshore wind and for context in this factory in Gaspé, Canada where the material deviation existed, we’ve made about 150 blades, so that gives you an indication and context of the work ahead.”

The turbine sustained damage on 13 July and was shut down, with Vineyard Wind reporting there were no injuries during this incident. A few days after the blade failure, the developer announced that a “significant part” of the remaining blade came loose from the turbine.

On 17 July, the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) issued an order instructing Vineyard Wind to suspend electricity production from all wind turbines until it could be determined whether the blade failure affects any other of the project’s turbines.

BSEE also said it would “conduct an independent assessment to ensure the safety of future offshore renewable energy operations.”

GE Vernova is still working to finalise its root cause analysis but said the investigation to date indicated that the affected blade experienced a manufacturing deviation.

“We have not identified information indicating an engineering design flaw in the blade or information of a connection with the blade event we experienced in an Offshore Wind project in the UK, which was caused by an installation error out at sea,” GE Vernova’s CEO said on 24 July.

At the beginning of May, a blade on an installed turbine at the Dogger Bank A offshore wind farm in the UK also sustained damage, after which GE Vernova launched an investigation into the cause of the incident. The company’s initial findings were that the circumstances surrounding the incident were isolated to the single blade affected, according to the Dogger Bank Wind Farm consortium.

“In line with safety procedures, the surrounding marine area has been restricted and relevant authorities notified. No one was injured or in the vicinity at the time the damage was sustained. Turbine installation has resumed, and other construction work on the wind farm continues,” Dogger Bank Wind Farm said in a statement on 9 May.

The 806 MW Vineyard Wind 1 will comprise 62 GE Vernova’s Haliade-X 13 MW wind turbines, each with a 220-metre rotor equipped with 107-metre blades.

Wind turbine installation at the project site, located some 15 miles (approximately 24 kilometres) off the coast of Massachusetts, began in September 2023 and the wind farm began generating power in February.

By the end of June, ten turbines were supplying over 136 MW of electricity to the grid in Massachusetts, making the project the largest operating offshore wind farm in the US.