Developed  jointly by ENGIE Brasil Energia, WEG and CELESC and regulated under Aneel’s Research and Development Program (R&D), the first nationally manufactured wind generator began commercial operations on February 23. Installed in ENGIE Brasil Energia’s experimental R&D park in Tubarão (SC), the equipment, with a 4.2 MW capacity, was designed and produced by WEG at its plant in Jaraguá do Sul (SC).

Over the course of its design, the project consolidated into ENGIE Brasil’s largest R&D enterprise at an investment of more than R$ 80 million. The generator,  hub and nacelle, which together weigh 201.3 tons, were produced by WEG at its headquarters in Jaraguá do Sul (SC), tested at the largest wind turbine test bed site in the Americas and equipped for use in future platforms of up to 6MW. The blades were manufactured by Aeris in Caucaia (CE) and shipped by boat and truck, the assembly of the wind turbine as a whole being concluded in June 2021.

In addition to feeding power into the National Grid, the conclusion of the ratification and commercial operation phase confirmed the operational viability of the equipment. This gives WEG the security to scale up the manufacture of wind turbines, launching them on the market.

Roberto Kinceler, the project’s manager at Celesc, points out that in future, energy generators around the world will be able to invest in the product. “Tests with  wind turbines for the Brazilian market meet the challenges of the production chain such as material supply and costs for implementing wind generation projects nationally, being technologically complete products”, he explains. The partnership between the three companies is designed to encourage the technological development based on the local realities in the wind power area with a view to reducing the country’s technological dependence and stimulating innovation along the chain with high value added projects.

The initiative is in line with ENGIE’s strategy to be a benchmark in the transition to a low carbon economy in Brazil and in the production of energy from renewable sources. “To see a partner of the size of WEG providing the market with equipment of excellence with the support and the expertise of ENGIE is cause for great pride. All parties concerned win from the development of indigenous wind turbine technology, optimizing costs and the logistics of the future projects themselves for expanding wind generation capacity in the country’, comments Eduardo Sattamini, Chief Executive and Investor Relations Officer at ENGIE Brasil Energia.

Partnership between WEG and ENGIE Brasil Energia is a long-standing one

The companies are partners in other initiatives, in addition to the relationship for developing  the electrical sector. WEG has been a client of ENGIE Brasil Energia in energy supply contracts since 2004, the existing agreement between the companies running for 5 years with 14 MWm allocated to the supply of WEG’s operations at its headquarters in Jaraguá do Sul (SC).

ENGIE Brasil Energia is also a client of WEG, which frequently supplies equipment and services for operating and maintaining the Company’s generation and transmission assets.