Siemens turbine breaks at 21-MW Hawaiian wind farm - report

One of the eight 3-MW Siemens turbines at the 21-MW Auwahi Wind farm on the southeast coast of Maui, Hawaii suffered a damage on Sunday.

The blades, hub and nacelle of the machine fell off the tower to the ground, The Maui News reported on Tuesday, citing an official with the owner of the wind farm, Sempra US Gas & Power LLC.

Jill Howard, Sempra US Gas & Power manager of communications and marketing, was quoted as saying in an e-mail that the company is in the very early stages of an investigation and is working with Siemens AG (ETR:SIE) to determine the cause and corrective actions.

According to the report, there were no injuries or damages beyond the failed turbine.

As a precautionary measure the whole wind farm has been shut down until the completion of the investigation, Howard said.

The wind farm was completed in December 2012. It is selling power to Maui Electric Co under a 20-year contract.

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