What We Know About The Cause Of The Vineyard Wind Turbine Failure So Far

The failure of one of Vineyard Wind's turbine blades has shut down the ambitious offshore energy project and littered Nantucket's beaches with debris. But what do we know so far regarding the cause of the failure?

Vineyard Wind first disclosed the incident at 3:41 p.m. on Monday with an email announcement regarding an "offshore incident." The company stated that blade damage had occurred on one of its turbines "on Saturday evening," and that no one had been hurt.

By Monday evening, Vineyard Wind communications director Craig Gilvarg had confirmed that debris spotted by Nantucket charter boat captain Carl Bois on Sunday was indeed pieces of the turbine blade that had been recovered.

On Tuesday, Gilvarg provided additional details about the situation, including that the blade experienced a breakage approximately 65 feet out from the root. The turbine, he said, was in its commissioning phase and was still undergoing testing. Nearly all of the blade remains affixed to the turbine and has not fallen into the water. 

"The cause of the breakage is unknown at this time," Gilvarg said. "GE, as the project’s turbine and blade manufacturer and installation contractor, will now be conducting the analysis into the root cause of the incident."

Gilvarg also addressed rumors that the turbine blade had previously been damaged and that Vineyard Wind had repaired and reinstalled the blade in question. 

"This is not accurate," Gilvarg stated. "Three newly manufactured replacement blades were installed on this GE Vernova wind turbine after one of the original blades for the turbine was damaged during the lifting process and subsequently removed from the construction area."

Vineyard Wind's GE turbines reach 853 feet in the air at the tip of the blade, each nearly as tall as the Eiffel Tower. There will eventually be a total of 62 turbines constructed in the Vineyard Wind 1 lease area, and as of mid-July, 19 had been completed, with 10 operational.

Just two months ago, another GE Vernova turbine suffered blade damage at the Dogger Bank Wind Farm in the North Sea off the eastern shore of England. According to a report from the company, "damage was sustained to a single blade on an installed turbine at Dogger Bank A offshore wind farm. In line with safety procedures, the surrounding marine area has been restricted and relevant authorities notified. No one was injured or in the vicinity, at the time the damage was sustained."