Turbine tower collapses at Walkaway wind farm after steel crack

In June 2022, turbine 43 at the Alinta Wind Farm in Walkaway, Western Australia, collapsed. The site operator, Iberdrola, launched a root cause analysis investigation, consulting its global technical team and operations and maintenance providers. Although the investigation was not yet finalised at the time of reporting, Iberdrola stated it believed the failure was caused by a crack in the turbine's steel tower. The entire plant, comprising 54 Vestas V82 wind turbines, was inspected internally and externally, including detailed analysis of the steel towers. By early October 2022, around four months after the collapse, the wind farm was reported to be operating at near full capacity. The failed turbine had been dismantled and removed from site, while four other turbines were identified as requiring repairs before they could be returned to service.

A crack in the turbine's steel tower was identified by the operator as the likely cause of the collapse, though the root cause analysis had not been finalised at the time of reporting.

1. Structural cracking in wind turbine towers can lead to collapse and should be a focus of routine and post-incident inspection regimes.
2. Following any tower failure, operators should inspect comparable structures across the whole site to identify other units at risk.
3. Publishing preliminary findings while a root cause analysis continues helps other operators of the same turbine model act early.

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