EMERGING SOUTH AFRICA WIND SECTOR WILL NEED TO INVEST IN BLADE REPAIR CAPACITY – ALTITEC SOUTH AFRICA

2018 report from turbine blade repair specialist highlights need for highly-skilled turbine blade repair technicians to support South Africas rapidly developing wind energy market

Cape Town, 6 November 2018 - Altitec, a leading turbine rotor blade inspection and repair specialist, today highlighted the need for South Africa to expand its pool of blade repair technicians to support operations and maintenance in the sector. As shown by Altitecs 2018 Blade Repair Atlas, published in October, newer wind farms, those under five years old, typically require more active monitoring and maintenance. Nearly all of South Africas installed wind energy capacity is under five years old.


The development of wind energy in South Africa has gathered momentum in 2018, since Energy Minister Jeff Radebe signed 27 agreements with Independent Power Producers on behalf of Eskom in April, which included 12 wind energy projects with a capacity of more than 1.3GW. Looking to the future, the government expects South Africas total installed capacity to reach 11.5GW by 2030.

New wind energy capacity will drive employment in the country, not only during construction, but also over the longer-term throughout the operational life of the assets. Altitecs Blade Atlas, which breaks down the activity of their rotor blade technicians on wind farms worldwide, younger wind farms require an average seven repairs per turbine, compared with only 2.2 repairs per turbine for farms older than five years.

Three-quarters of Altitecs inspections and repairs around the world were carried out on wind farms younger than five years old, while fifteen percent of operations were undertaken on wind farms in South Africa. Altitec segments its repairs in to three distinct types. The report shows that internal works made up 12% of all repairs by type in 2018, external repairs were 31%, with replacement of aerodynamic add-ons making up the 47% of all repairs Altitec carried out in the year.

"With the planned growth in wind farms over the next decade, South Africa will need a local cohort of highly-skilled rotor blade repair technicians to ensure the wind turbine fleet remains in optimal operation," commented Riccardo Buehler, Director, Altitec South Africa. "The Altitec Academy in Cape Town provides local training built on global experience to guarantee technicians have the skills to inspect and record damage to blades, and identify and conduct the necessary repairs."

Altitec will be attending this years WindABA exhibition in Cape Town on 7-8 November. To discuss the Repair Atlas and training for rotor blade technicians in South Africa, you can meet them at Stand 2.

If you would like to download a copy of the 2018 Blade Repair Atlas, please click here.

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About Altitec:
Altitec is an independently operated, specialist rope access blade inspection and repair business, headquartered in London, Berlin and Cape Town. Since 2008, Altitec technicians have provided regular inspections on more than 5,000 blades and 1,500 turbines in Europe, Africa, and Australia.
The firm provides a full range of blade inspection, repair and maintenance services. Altitec runs DNV GL certified training for rotor blade technicians through its Altitec Academy progamme at training centres in London and Cape Town.

Altitec is distribution, service and training partner for special rotor blade access with Actsafe Ascenders and Käufer Blade Access platforms in the UK, Ireland and South Africa.

For more information, visit www.altitec.co.za.

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