How big can a community project be? How does 93 turbines and 400 million euros sound? The latest onshore wind farm going up in the Netherlands will be more than 50% larger than the biggest one now standing – and it may be just the beginning. Why is Dutch community wind so utility-scale? Craig Morris investigates. Literally formed out of land reclaimed a half century ago from Ijsselmeer, the giant lake in northwest Netherlands, the province of Flevoland is largely farmland – and the center of Dutch onshore wind power production. Hundreds of turbines there are nearing the end of their 20-year service life. Replacing them – a process called repowering – is not a one-to-one proposition because wind turbines have grown so much in the past few decades. One question I am often asked when presenting the success of German community projects in the wind sector is whether projects haven’t simply gotten too big for small players. In light of the growth of turbines, the question seems logical. The Zeewolde wind farm provides a … Continue reading Biggest Dutch onshore wind farm to be community owned