A fire broke out at the Bulgana Green Power Hub in Victoria, Australia, which includes a Tesla battery energy storage system. The blaze severely damaged a Siemens Gamesa wind turbine, destroying both the nacelle and a blade.
The Country Fire Authority (CFA) in Victoria reported that the turbine kept crews occupied throughout the night at a wind farm near Great Western.
Local district commander Ben Townsend stated that CFA teams worked to establish safety zones while maintaining a safe distance from the turbine.
Initially, crews were dispatched due to a fire in the main body of the wind turbine and coordinated with the operator to shut it down. After leaving the site under the owners’ supervision, they were called back shortly after 3 a.m. when a blade caught fire, dislodged, and fell.
This incident occurred at the 194MW Bulgana Green Power Hub, as noted by Energy Safe Victoria, which confirmed that the nacelle was destroyed and that investigators are currently on-site.
The cause of the fire remains undetermined at this time.
The Bulgana Green Power Hub consists of 56 Siemens Gamesa SG 3.4-132 turbines, each rated at 3.47MW, along with a 20MW Tesla battery for storing surplus wind energy. Siemens Gamesa, which was reached for comments, secured a contract in 2018 to construct the Bulgana hub on an EPC basis for French renewable energy producer Neoen, with maintenance responsibilities for 25 years. In December, Neoen agreed to sell the Bulgana hub as part of a larger package of Australian generation and storage assets to HMC Capital, an ASX-listed asset manager.
Source: RECHARGE
