Ventos de Santa Eugenia (VSE) is a 519MW wind project being developed in north-eastern Brazil. The project will include ten wind farms, which will collectively produce 2.3TWh of electricity a year, enough to supply 1.17 million households in Brazil.
The VSE project is being developed by Statkraft with an estimated investment of R$2.5bn ($451m).
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It will be the company’s largest wind project in South America and will more than double its renewable energy capacity in the country.
The project is the result of Statkraft acquisition of a 660MW wind project in 2019. The company will expand the wind project to 1.1GW and the VSE wind farm covers the first 519MW of the development.
Statkraft finalised the turbine supply contract with Nordex in October 2020. The construction of the wind farm will begin in January 2021 with completion expected by June 2023. The first turbines are expected to become operational in September 2022.
The project is expected to create up to 1,200 jobs during the construction phase.
Ventos de Santa Eugenia wind project details
The location of the VSE wind farm is near Uibaí in the state of Bahia, which is close to Statkraft’s existing Bahia wind power assets.
The site was chosen due to excellent wind conditions in the area.
The project will adhere to the country’s guidelines for environmental and social permitting and monitoring systems. It will involve limited land acquisition and have a low environmental impact with no resettlement and no impact on red-listed species.
The VSE project will include 91 wind turbines supplied by Nordex. The N163/5.7 turbines will have a capacity factor of 52% with a power output of more than 5MW.
Turbine details
The N163/5.7 turbine has a hub height of 118m-164m and rotor diameter of 163m with a swept area of 20.867m², making it one of the biggest rotors in the onshore segment.
The turbine is specifically designed for regions with lower wind speeds and provides more than 20% higher annual energy production (AEP) and higher efficiency.
It has a high-speed gearbox and produces comparatively less sound of 106.4 dB(A) at 5.5MW.
The turbine shares the nacelle, gearbox and all system components with the N149/5.X model. The N163/5.7 features a new single-piece rotor blade with a length of 80m based on the company’s glass fibre / carbon fibre differential construction.
The turbine can be operated in different modes in the 5MW range depending on the requirements of the site and the customer. This enables the individual configuration of the wind farm with respect to turbine lifetime, energy yield, rating and sound requirements.
Statkraft in Brazil
Statkraft is a renewable power generation company, which owns wind power assets in Norway, Sweden, Brazil, and the UK.
The company operates two wind farms in Brazil, the Barra dos Coqueiros and the Brotas de Macaúbas. It is also developing the Serra de Mangabeira wind project as an extension of the existing Bahia wind farm.
The 35MW Barra dos Coqueiros project is located on the coast of the state of Sergipe and produces 92GWh annually. It has 23 wind turbines with an installed capacity of 1.5MW each.
The Brotas de Macaúbas wind complex includes three wind farms with a capacity of 35.07MW, 30.06MW, and 30.06 MW respectively. The complex has an annual production capacity of 322.3GWh.
In October 2019, Statkraft was awarded contracts, securing grid connection for 375.6MW of new wind power capacity in Brazil as part of an auction.
The company won contracts, accounting for 48.3% of the total wind power capacity awarded in the auction.
