Transformer monitoring for wind energy providers

Safeguarding your connection to the electricity grid

In the last 20 years, the contribution of wind power to the UK's energy needs has grown from 320MW in 2001 to more than 24GW in 2021.

A key asset within an offshore and onshore wind farm is the power transformer which connects the wind energy to the electricity grid. Power transformers have a design life that nominally is at least the typical 25-year life of the wind farm. However, transformers can develop faults well before the end of their life expectancy, leading to failure and ultimately downtime for the entire wind farm.

Transformer monitoring can provide immediate insight into the health of these assets and risk to availability. By continuously monitoring each transformer, developing faults are identified in real-time, enabling interventions to be taken to minimise the potential risk of downtime.

Are you aware of the financial impact a transformer failure can have on an offshore wind farm?

A key asset on a wind farm is the power transformer which connects the site to the electricity grid however, these assets can develop faults before their end of life leading to costly downtime to the wind farm.

An outage that lasts 6 months can cost an offshore wind farm up to £4m, whilst a repairable failure leading to a 7-day downtime period can cost up to £220k.

Transformer monitoring can play a significant role in mitigating these costs to wind energy providers and can offer a significant return on investment.

To find out more about the cost of downtime due to transformer failure, and the role of transformer monitoring, download our infographic.