Repowering of a wind energy production field - case study of SIDI-DAOUD field in northeastern Tunisia

Abstract

Every energy production system, whether conventional or renewable, reaches its final limits after a period of operation predefined by the feasibility study for such a project. Then we'll have to think about renewal to maintain a certain level of reliability and availability as a factor of operational safety. This project seeks of studying the repowering of two 1st phases of wind farm in Sidi-Daoued in north Tunisia, which have reached the end of their life (20 years); it aims to identify three new configurations and to simulate different scenarios to determine which types of turbines are the most optimal for a repowering project. The three types of wind turbine selected were Vestas 4200kw, Nordex Acciona and Siemens-Gamesa, each with a power output of 4500kw. These are the best-known types of wind turbine in the world, and the heights of the hubs are very similar, at around 105m, so that a comparison can be made between the three models. Therefore, the average speeds are around 7.8 m/s2.The final number of turbines to be installed on site is around 13 turbines for the three scenarios, but the result favours the second scenario with Siemens-GAMESA wind turbines, where the annual production can exceed 210.1 GWH with a capacity factor equal to 41 percent.