GE and Invenergy have announced the purchase of the first 2.5-120 brilliant wind turbines in the world. Invenergy has ordered three units as part of an 86-turbine deal with GE for its Mills County, Texas, wind farm.
The 2.5-120, announced in January, harnesses the power of the Industrial Internet to analyze tens of thousands of data points every second. This helps manage wind variability and provides reliable, short-term predictable power, while communicating seamlessly with neighboring turbines, service technicians and operators. The 2.5-120 is the first wind turbine to incorporate short-term battery storage as part of the complete turbine package. Integrating the battery into the wind turbine allows wind farm operators to reap the benefits of energy storage without the high costs of farm-level battery storage installation. This design integrates GE’s Durathon Battery technology with three software applications (Ramp Control, Predictable Power and Frequency Regulation). The resulting intelligent system enables power producers and the wind turbines themselves to make data-informed decisions and provide short-term predictable power. The 2.5-120 brilliant turbines are scheduled to be installed this year at the Goldthwaite Wind Energy facility, currently under construction in central Texas. The project is expected to commence full commercial operation by the end of 2013.
