TÜV SÜD grants Nordex DIBt approval for an internally developed 179-meter hybrid tower for the N175/6.X wind turbine

Development of the N175/6.X, Nordex’s latest wind turbine, and its first planned tower variants is progressing as planned. Throughout this year, the Nordex group will install in Germany the first two highly efficient wind turbines of this type of the Delta4000 series with different hub heights. Two tower concepts will be used here: a 112-meter steel tube tower and a hybrid concrete-steel tower developed internally by Nordex with a hub height of 179 meters.

At the end of 2023, Nordex already obtained the first DIBt approval of the N175/6.X for the 112-meter tubular steel tower from TÜV SÜD. Now TÜV SÜD has issued type approval for the new 179-meter hybrid tower developed in-house by Nordex. This certificate is an important prerequisite in terms of construction permits in Germany to be able to install the N175/6.X on a 179 meter hybrid tower. The certificate was presented on March 20, 2024 at the Nordex booth at the WindEurope conference in Bilbao, Spain.

Karsten Brüggemann, Vice President of the Central Region of the Nordex Group: “Germany is one of the target markets for the 179-meter tower. With a rotor diameter of 175 meters and an installed capacity of more than 6 MW, the N175/6.X turbine, in combination with this tall hybrid tower, makes it possible to considerably increase energy production, especially in places with little wind and remote areas. of the coast. .”

Stephan Mayer, Head of Onshore and Offshore Support Structures at TÜV SÜD Industrie Service GmbH: “The successful type approval is an independent confirmation that the requirements of the DIBt directive for wind turbines have been met. Especially in innovative developments such as the new Nordex hybrid tower, the 4-eye principle is a key element to ensure safety and reliability.”

In November 2023, the Nordex Group installed the first turbines of the N175/6.X’s sister model, the N163/5.X, on in-house developed hybrid towers. With a hub height of 168 meters, this hybrid tower variant is similar in construction to the 179-meter hybrid tower planned in Germany.

The hybrid tower developed by Nordex is based on many years of experience in the design and production of concrete towers. This is a proven concrete tower technology that Nordex has been using for over 15 years. Currently, more than 2,500 concrete towers are already successfully used.

A hybrid tower consists of convex metal segments up to 20 meters long, assembled on site and tensioned before the steel sections, nacelle and rotor are installed on them.

The Group has installed around 50 GW of wind energy capacity in more than 40 markets throughout its corporate history and generated consolidated sales of around €6.5 billion in 2023. The company currently has more than 10,000 employees. The Group’s manufacturing network includes factories in Germany, Spain, Brazil, India, USA (suspended) and Mexico. Its product portfolio focuses on onshore turbines in the 4 to 6 MW+ classes that are designed to meet the market requirements of countries with limited available space and regions with limited grid capacity.