Vattenfall Sets Immediate Landfill Ban, Recycling Plan for More Wind Turbine Components

October 31, 2024, by Adrijana Buljan

Swedish multinational offshore wind developer, Vattenfall, which committed to a landfill ban on decommissioned wind turbine blades from the wind farms it owns back in 2021, has expanded the ban and set a recycling plan to include not only turbine blades but also permanent magnets, nacelle canopies and nose cones.

“As of now, landfills will be prohibited and by 2030 these parts must be fully recycled”, the company said in its results for the third quarter of the year.

At the beginning of September, Vattenfall revealed its aim to achieve a 100 per cent circular outflow of permanent magnets from its wind farms decommissioned from 2030 onwards. The company said this made Vattenfall the first developer to commit to a detailed circular economy target for these components.

“While substantial waste from wind turbines using permanent magnets is not expected until the mid-2030s, it is crucial to take pro-active steps already now to establish efficient processes to manage these materials in the future”, Vattenfall stated in a press release on 5 September.

The company noted that the magnets contain rare earth elements that are valuable and in need of recycling due to their scarcity, sustainability impact, and geopolitical supply risks.

“Vattenfall is dedicated to developing circular solutions to reuse, refurbish, repurpose, or recycle permanent magnets, aiming to reduce reliance on raw materials and minimize the environmental & social impact associated with new magnets, especially related to the mining of the rare earth elements.”

Later the same month, the offshore wind developer announced it was enforcing an immediate ban on landfilling nacelle canopies and nose cones, building on the commitment Vattenfall made in 2021 on wind turbine blades.

The expanded target is already being integrated into existing wind farm decommissioning contracts, Vattenfall said on 23 September.

“Expanding our recycling target is a crucial step towards achieving a circular business by 2030”, said Eva Julius-Philipp, Director of Environment & Sustainability at Vattenfall BA Wind. “Our aim is to ensure that all decommissioned turbine composite materials are processed through circular methods – such as reuse, refurbishment repurposing, and recycling. This will prevent composite waste from ending up in landfills and instead make it available for second-life applications. By addressing this now, we avoid the risk of these materials being lost for the circular economy.”

Three years ago, the company imposed an immediate landfill ban for blades and set a goal to recycle 50 per cent of all wind turbine blades from the wind farms in its ownership by 2025, with a target of recycling 100 per cent by 2030.

The same year Siemens Gamesa committed to making its blades fully recyclable by 2030 and launched its first recyclable blade which Vattenfall has installed on three of its turbines at the Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind farm in the Netherlands.