environmental statement - Rotherham's Online Application for ...

turbine would automatically be applied and the turbine would rapidly shutdown.
5.30 If the cause of the shut down was due to high wind speeds then the
turbine would automatically begin operation again once the average wind
speed dropped below 25 m/s. Under other causes of shutdown, e.g.
through malfunction or instability, the turbine would be „parked‟ in a safe
condition (e.g. with the rotor blades orientated 90 degrees to the wind
direction). It would remain parked until manually restarted by a member of
the operations and maintenance team following inspection and, if
necessary, repair.
5.31 The lifetime of the project would be 25 years between commissioning and
decommissioning. Turbines are generally designed with a warranty life of
20-25 years. To ensure that turbines operate with acceptable availability,
generally considered to be over 95% average availability, regular preplanned
maintenance and servicing programmes are performed on each
turbine. A typical maintenance programme is outlined below.
Maintenance Programme
5.32 Commonly, maintenance regimes begin shortly after commissioning with a
'post-construction' check of the torque levels of all bolts within the
structure. This is normally performed 10 days after commissioning and
again at 3 months after commissioning.
5.33 After this minor and major service regimes continue on a 6-monthly basis
with both services being performed annually throughout the lifetime of the
turbine.
5.34 Routine oil sampling and testing of lubricant maintains awareness of the
integrity and condition of these lubricants. This allows cost-effective oil
changes to be performed as the oil quality degrades. Routine oil sampling
and testing of transformer oils is also performed in order to maintain
awareness of the integrity of the electrical properties of these oils.
5.35 Maintenance of high voltage switchgear is also performed routinely, but
the time periods between servicing routines is commonly 5 to 8 years
when modern equipment is utilised.
5.36 In the case of major component maintenance being required, such as a
generator or blade replacement, large vehicles similar to those used
during construction may be required to return to site. These will be subject
to similar controls as were agreed for the initial construction period.
5.37 All maintenance of any equipment item will be performed according to the
Original Equipment Manufacturer‟s stated schedules and procedures.
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Penny Hill Wind Farm
Environmental Statement