Practical use of methodological foundations in designing wind power plants – case study

Brief Production of electrical power from renewable energy sources presents a chance to: satisfy the society’s power needs without encumbering the environment with combustion products of, among others, lignite and coal, energy security as well as become independent from traditional energy source suppliers. The aim of this article is to present the methodology used when designing wind farms utilising a group of wind turbines. The article presents the objectives of the European Union’s policy on renewable energy sources, the development of renewable energy sector over the recent years, and the possibility of using wind energy power plants in particular regions of Europe. A project of a wind farm was created, taking as an example the most advantageous region of Poland in terms of climate, i.e. Pomerania. Taking into account the geographical conditions, such as: location, landform, distribution of winds blowing in the area analysed as well as the location of landscape elements (forests, fields, lakes and buildings), a plan for the placement of wind generators was drawn up. Specialist software: MapInfo, WAsP and WinPro was used for designing the farm. The analysis was conducted for three typical generators: Nordex N90, GE 2.75–100 and Siemens SWT 2.3–113, which differ mainly in rotor diameter, power and efficiency. On the basis of geographical and climate data and the technical parameters of the generators, capital expenditures (CAPEX) and operating expenditures (OPEX) analyses were conducted. The solutions analysed were optimised using the LCOE (Levelised Cost of Energy) index.