Power on: First turbine commissioned at RWE’s Kaskasi wind farm in the German North Sea

• 342-megawatt wind farm to supply green electricity to over 400,000 households
• RWE pilots Siemens Gamesa’s RecyclableBlade and paves the way to full recyclability of wind turbines
• Four additional offshore projects under development off the German coast

35 kilometres north of the island of Heligoland, the first turbine of RWE’s Kaskasi offshore wind farm was recently commissioned, and is now supplying green electricity to the grid. Nine of the in total 38 Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD Flex offshore wind turbines are installed, each with a capacity of close to 9 megawatts (MW). Kaskasi is RWE’s sixth wind farm off the German coast. When fully operational by the end of 2022, Kaskasi will be capable of supplying the equivalent of more than 400,000 German households with green electricity every year. This is comparable to a large city like Frankfurt am Main.

World’s first recyclable wind turbine blades installed

RWE is leading the technological development in the offshore wind industry. Together with Siemens Gamesa, the Kaskasi project now features the world’s first installed recyclable wind turbine blades. The components of the 81-meter long RecyclableBlades are able to be recycled for new applications at the end of their lifecycle. RWE and Siemens Gamesa are helping to pave the way towards the full recyclability of wind turbines.

Many components of a wind turbine already have established recycling practices. Until now, the composite materials used in wind turbine blades have been more challenging to recycle. The resin system employed binds all components together. In its RecyclableBlade, Siemens Gamesa uses a resin type with a chemical structure that makes it possible to efficiently separate it from other components following decommissioning. The process protects the properties of the materials, allowing them to be reused in new casting applications, for example in the automotive industry or in consumer goods like flight cases and flatscreen casings.

Tailwind for RWE and the energy transition in Germany

RWE is one of the leading companies in the field of renewable energies and No. 2 worldwide in offshore wind. By 2030, RWE intends to grow its global offshore wind capacity from currently 3 gigawatts (GW) to 8 GW (capacity represents RWE’s share only). Also in Germany, the company is stepping up the pace: In the German North Sea RWE is pushing ahead with the development of four offshore wind projects with a total capacity of 1.5 GW – partly together with its Canadian partner. By 2030, RWE will invest up to 15 billion euros gross in the green energy sector in Germany.

For more information about the Kaskasi offshore project, please visit our website.

Forward-looking statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements reflect the current views, expectations and assumptions of management, and are based on information currently available to management. Forward-looking statements do not guarantee the occurrence of future results and developments and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual future results and developments may deviate materially from the expectations and assumptions expressed in this document due to various factors. These factors primarily include changes in the general economic and competitive environment. Furthermore, developments on financial markets and changes in currency exchange rates as well as changes in national and international laws, in particular in respect of fiscal regulation, and other factors influence the company’s future results and developments. Neither the company nor any of its affiliates undertakes to update the statements contained in this press release.