The construction work for the Tolpanvaara wind farm, the first wind farm in Finland operated by Estonia’s energy group Enefit Green, has been completed and all 13 wind turbines are producing electricity. In total, the farm produces nearly 250 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of green electricity per year, which covers the annual consumption of nearly 40,000 Finnish households and helps cover the ever-increasing demand for renewable energy.
The wind farm’s wind turbines were supplied and installed by Nordex, while the foundations of the wind turbines and the roads and other infrastructure were built by Infra Builders. Anti-icing devices were installed on the wind turbines, which reduce the risk of ice falling from the wind turbine blades and help keep the farm operating even in more difficult conditions. The wind turbines have now been received from the wind turbine manufacturer and only grid tests await.
“Tolpanvaara is Enefit Green’s only wind farm located in Finland and also our northernmost wind farm,” explained Lauri Ulm, Head of Wind Energy at Enefit Green. “The wind farm located on top of hills is distinguished from Enefit Green’s other wind farms, among other things, because its frequent guests are reindeer, who visit the foundations of the wind turbines to warm themselves in the sun. In order to study the impact of the construction of the wind farm, we installed GPS devices on five reindeer to monitor the movement of the animals during the construction and operation period of the wind farm.”
