Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Turbine blade snaps at controversial Shetland wind farm

A probe has been launched by the manufacturer.

It could be a long winter ahead for Viking Wind Farm. Image: SSE Energy/ PA Wire.
It could be a long winter ahead for Viking Wind Farm. Image: SSE Energy/ PA Wire.

Concerns have been raised about a turbine blade snapping at a wind farm in Shetland.

The Viking Wind Farm turbine has been disabled and the surrounding area ‘made safe’ after the damage was identified on October 30.

The incident puts the durability of the turbines under the microscope, with the development yet to “be exposed to the full severity of a Shetland winter”.

Photos show the damaged wind turbine blade at Viking Wind Farm, Shetland. Image: Supplied

Viking Wind Farm has 103 turbines and first generated power in June 2024, after more than 15 years in development.

It was originally a joint venture with the Shetland community before SSE Renewables became the sole owner in 2019.

It has, however, faced criticism from locals, with some saying it “has caused significant division in our community”.

Green councillor Alex Armitage previously told Shetland News: “Shetland’s renewable energy resources should be used to build wealth into our community, not extracted for private profit.”

Volunteer group Sustainable Shetland legally opposed the construction of the wind farm in 2015.

They took their fight to the UK Supreme Court on the basis that the development could lead to a decline in whimbrel birds, but judges rejected their concerns and endorsed the planning consent.

A group spokesperson said: “That a turbine blade should fail so soon after the windfarm was operational is very concerning.

“It should trigger a full inspection of all the blades.

“A repair is likely to take some time as the cranes used in the erection of the wind farm are no longer in Shetland.

“This does not inspire confidence in the longevity of the wind farm.

“It has yet to be exposed to the full severity of a Shetland winter.”

Investigation into damaged turbine begins

An SSE Renewables spokesperson said: “We are aware of a damaged blade on a wind turbine at Viking Wind Farm.

“In line with our established safety procedures, the wind turbine has been disabled and access to the turbine and the surrounding area has been restricted and made safe.

“No one was injured, or in the vicinity at the time the damage was sustained.

“We are working closely with the turbine manufacturer, Vestas, which has initiated an investigation into the cause of the accident.”

<span style="vertical-align: inherit"><span style="vertical-align: inherit">The first turbine was installed last year. Image: SSE Renewables.</span></span>

A Vestas spokesperson added: “On 30 October 2024, a V117-4.2 MW wind turbine experienced blade damage at the Viking wind farm.

“All plants and personnel are safe and accounted for, the site has been secured, and there were no injuries.

“Vestas will work with the customer to determine the root cause.”

Conversation