The Diplomat
Iberdrola has begun construction of the 50.4 megawatt (MW) Askio III wind farm in Greece, which will supply electricity to more than 54,000 homes, according to the company.
The facility is located next to the Askio mountain, near the town of Kozani in the West Macedonia region, and will generate an average of 75 jobs during construction, with peaks of up to 150 jobs.
The wind farm will have 12 wind turbines with a capacity of 4.2 MW each, and the company expects to complete construction next autumn to avoid the frequent snowfalls that are common in the area in the winter months.
However, this is not the only conditioning factor, as the steep terrain and the difficult weather conditions in the high mountains also make the work difficult.
The blades of these turbines are 70 metres long and the rotor diameter (the set of blades and the piece that joins them to the main shaft) is 150 metres.
For the transport of the blades, the ‘blade lifter’ technique has been chosen, which minimises the environmental impact associated with the transport of these components.
This method is based on a ten-axle trailer that incorporates an articulated platform, which, in addition to rotating, can be tilted vertically, making it possible to move along existing roads and tracks, which reduces the need to build additional accesses and reduces the environmental and landscape impact.
In addition to Askio III, the Iberdrola group is also building the 33.6 MW Mikronoros wind farm in Greece (in Rhodopi) and plans to start construction this year on the 18 MW Rokani (in Viotia), which will have the largest wind turbines available, and the 37.8 MW Askio II, also in Kozani.
