The purpose of a wind farm is to use renewable resources to generate green energy. Wind energy makes good economic sense, but of course it is a significant capital expenditure, too. It is imperative that at the end of the day a wind energy project becomes a worthwhile investment.
There are two different types of cost:
- the planning and development cost and the building and installation cost of a wind farm (investment cost)
- operation and maintenance cost during the operation of the wind farm (operation cost).
Investment cost:
The investment cost represents all expenditures which arise until the commissioning of the wind turbines on the wind farm. Some are related to the development, such as:
- met mast installation & monitoring,
- all surveys and reports required for the building permit,
- building permit fees, council rates, taxes or levies
- fees for entries into any land register.
Other costs are directly connected with the building of the wind farm, such as:
- building of access roads,
- construction of foundations for the wind turbines,
- underground cabling to connect the wind turbines,
- the grid connection, a substation if required,
- fees for shipping and transport including permits,
- duties and taxes,
- a suitable crane for the installation of the wind turbines,
- the wind turbines including blades and associated equipment,
- the installation and commissioning of the wind turbines.
Operation cost:
Wind turbines are designed for a life span of at least 20 years. During this time the wind farm has to pay back all investment costs and all operation costs, such as:
- insurance,
- land lease costs,
- service and maintenance costs for the wind turbine,
- operation and management taxes,
- finance costs,
- any other costs.
You need to have a certain level of experience to prepare a convincing and credible calculation of profitability. NewEn has already taken part in many projects, including overseeing infrastructure calculations (including foundations, access roads, grid) and operational management, and is a dependable professional for wind farm project management.