Wind energy: the turbine manufactured by WEG is installed in ENGIE's experimental research and development park, located in the municipality of Tubarão, in Santa Catarina

WEG, one of the largest manufacturers of electrical equipment in the world, and ENGIE Brasil Energia, are concluding the most important phase of the Research and Development Project “Aerogerador Nacional”, which is the assembly of the wind turbine.

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Located in the municipality of Tubarão, in Santa Catarina, the wind turbine is installed in ENGIE's experimental research and development park and is the result of a Strategic Project of the company's Research and Development Program (R&D) with the National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL).

The wind turbine was designed and built by WEG and the second stage of the project also relied on R&D resources from Centrais Elétricas de Santa Catarina SA (CELESC).

The project called “Development and certification of a 4,2 MW national wind turbine with direct coupling, with permanent magnet synchronous generator and full power converter” aims to develop and encourage national technology in wind energy to reduce dependence on other countries, by strengthening the Brazilian chain of component suppliers and service providers for the manufacture and installation of large wind turbines.

The manufacture of the concrete tower segments, with more than 1.100 tons of steel and concrete, was carried out by WEG at the site where the wind turbine was installed (wind turbine), the generator, hub and nacelle, installed on top of the concrete tower, were produced by WEG, whose headquarters and main global operation is located in Jaraguá do Sul/SC. The wind blades were manufactured by the company Aeris, in Caucaia/CE.

Challenges for installing wind turbines

One of the challenges of the project was logistics, given the dimensions of the equipment and the distances covered. The generator, hub and nacelle, which together weigh 201,3 tons, traveled 300 km by road, from Jaraguá do Sul/SC to Tubarão/SC. The wind turbine blades, which measure 72 meters and weigh 22,5 tons each, were transported by ship from the Port of Pecém, in Ceará, to the Port of Imbituba/SC, from where they traveled 50km in a special trailer to Tubarão/SC. On their road journeys, the equipment had escorts from the Federal Highway Police and support from CELESC to lift the electrical wiring along the way.

This new wind turbine, with 4,2 MW of power, was installed 600 meters from another 2,1 MW wind turbine, resulting from the first stage of this Strategic R&D Project, which was the first prototype built by WEG in Brazil. It went into operation in 2015, and the analysis of its performance contributed to the development of this new wind turbine, more suited to the wind conditions in Brazil. The electricity generated will be supplied in the future to the National Interconnected System (SIN), which makes the connection between the generation units and the electricity consumers.

The two wind turbines are mechanically connected facing each other, one acting as a generator and the other as an engine, simulating the wind

“The development of the AGW 147/4.2 wind turbine relied on multidisciplinary engineering teams. The final validation of the components was carried out at WEG's headquarters in Jaraguá do Sul using the back-to-back bench. In such an arrangement, two wind turbines are mechanically connected facing each other, acting as a generator and the other as a motor simulating the wind, which allows more autonomy to our R&D process. It is worth emphasizing that this test structure is the largest of its kind in the Americas, being capable of serving future platforms of up to 6 MW. The second wind turbine used in the arrangement will be destined for the Indian market, with the installation of this 50 Hz prototype expected in 2021”, as explained by the Managing Director of WEG Energia, João Paulo Gualberto da Silva.

“ENGIE's investment in this project exceeds BRL 80 million and seeks to encourage the national market for wind energy. The development of Brazilian technology can bring socio-economic benefits to several regions, increase the country's competitiveness for the supply of this equipment abroad and may reduce the cost of energy generated, bringing direct benefits to the consumer", reports ENGIE's New Business, Strategy and Innovation Director Brazil Energy, Guilherme Ferrari.

Looking for a job? One of the largest manufacturers of electric motors in the world, it has many high school and higher education vacancies in various regions of Santa Catarina and Minas Gerais, check it out!

Weg has many high school and higher education job openings. The company offers its employees profit sharing, private pension plan, health and dental plan, subsidized food, in-house outpatient clinic, pharmacy card, agreement with day care centers, in-house library, recreational association, among others.

Enrollment: Those interested in applying for job vacancies and internships opened by WEG, in Santa Catarina and Minas Gerais, must register the curriculum directly on the company's website, at this link. Good luck to everyone!

The largest FPSO platform in Brazil — manufactured by Modec for Equinor, destined for the Santos Basin pre-salt, will have 140 WEG electric motors

About 40 medium voltage electric motors, with powers reaching up to 13.400 kW, plus 100 low voltage electric motors and five medium voltage frequency inverters (three of these with a nominal power of 11.723 kW) will be supplied by the multinational WEG to equip the largest oil and gas platform in Brazil.

WEG is already manufacturing the equipment at its factory located in Jaraguá do Sul (SC). The electric motors and inverters will be supplied by compressor and pump manufacturers in Europe and Asia, and will act in activating this equipment in the Bacalhau field, in the Santos Basin pre-salt.

The largest transformer produced by WEG left the SC factory in April, heading to the African continent

The Brazilian giant WEG built its largest transformer at its factory in Blumenau, SC. The equipment, weighing 348 tons each, will be incorporated into the electrical energy transmission system in the south of the African continent, providing reliability in the energy supply and directly contributing to the development of the local economy.

The first unit was shipped at the beginning of April this year and the second in May, in advance of the agreed contractual deadlines, whose complex transport logistics to the final destination is estimated in 60 days.