Blade damage during construction at Dogger Bank A offshore wind farm
May 2024Published 1 May 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
- Where
- Dogger Bank A, North Sea off England, United Kingdom
- Operator
- Dogger Bank Wind Farm consortium
- What
- Blade damage on an installed turbine during construction
- Injuries
- None reported
- Cause
- Installation error offshore
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Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): Dogger Bank Wind Farm consortium, GE Vernova
What happened
In May 2024, a blade on an installed turbine at Dogger Bank A, an offshore wind farm under construction in the North Sea off the coast of England, United Kingdom, sustained damage. The Dogger Bank Wind Farm consortium, the project's owner and operator, disclosed the damage about a week after it occurred, stating that the damage was limited to a single blade on an installed turbine, that the surrounding marine area was restricted as a precaution, and that no one was injured or in the vicinity at the time.
Construction work, including further turbine installation, resumed roughly a week after the event once initial findings indicated that the issue was confined to the affected blade.
Contributing factors
According to public statements made by GE Vernova, the turbine manufacturer, in July 2024 and reported in the trade press, the damage was assessed as resulting from an installation error offshore during the construction campaign, rather than from a design or manufacturing issue. GE Vernova drew a distinction between this event and a separate blade failure on a similar turbine type at another project, which it attributed to a manufacturing deviation. The detailed findings and any resulting changes to installation procedures were not published. The Dogger Bank Wind Farm consortium stated publicly that the issue was isolated to the single affected blade.
Lessons learned
- An offshore installation error can damage a blade on an installed turbine, so operators should apply the same quality controls and hold points to marine lifts as to factory work.
- Early findings that limit the issue to one blade still require checks on other units installed in the same campaign or by the same crew.
- A marine area restriction after blade damage allows safe resumption only once findings confirm the cause is confined to the affected unit.
More lessons on structural integrity and turbines, from every incident on the register.
Not yet known
- Detailed findings on the installation error
- Changes made to installation procedures
- Turbine model and age
- Duration of downtime and cost of repairs
This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.
This site has 3 entries on the register: every incident at Dogger Bank.
Other entries that name Dogger
Published 2026-05-01. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
