Suzlon Energy: Working on new product to boost capacity of old wind turbines

Jayaram Prasad Chalasani, CEO, Suzlon
| Photo Credit:
DEEPAK KR/THE HINDU

Eyeing the potential market for ageing wind turbine-replacements in India, Suzlon Energy is working on a product that can increase the capacity of older turbines, most of which are located at sites with high wind energy potential.

“There are two types of repowering potential. One is the one where you don’t change much but increase the capacity by replacing the blades or the nacelle. We are working on a product that can increase the capacity of older turbines which are on lesser capacity. We will start tapping into that potential by the end of this year,” JP Chalasani, Chief Executive Officer, Suzlon Group, said during an earning call hosted by the company on Thursday. The company expects this traction for this business during the financial years 2027 and 2028.

Most of the wind turbines installed in India up to the year 2000 have sub-megawatt (MW) capacity and are at sites with high wind energy potential. Some of the old Wind turbines have already completed their design life, while some are approaching the end of their design life. These wind turbines are inefficient compared to the latest technology and have lower hub heights (in the range of 30- 60m) compared to hub heights of 120-140 m range being installed now. According to the National Institute of Wind Energy estimate, India has a repowering potential of 25.406 GW for wind turbines below 2 MW capacity. To help the cause, the Union government has also brought in the ‘National Repowering & Life Extension Policy for Wind Power Projects – 2023.”

Chalasani said the second type of repowering potential in India involves completely replacing existing turbines with new ones. However, wind power developers prefer “virgin sites” due to the higher cost of uprooting and replacing a wind turbine. Suzlon also said it had incurred a capital expenditure of ₹350 crore during FY25 and is expected to spend between ₹400-450 crore during FY26.

According to NIWE estimates, Tamil Nadu has the highest repowering potential at 7300 MW, followed by Gujarat (4600 MW), Maharashtra (3400 MW), Karnataka (3000 MW), Rajasthan (2900 MW) and Andhra Pradesh (2300 MW).

Suzlon also said it is working on a variant of S144, a 3MW wind turbine generator (WTG), which emerged as the company’s top-performing product during FY 25. “Our current product S144, can easily meet the demand of the current market requirements in terms of both technology and pricing. What you can expect is there could be a variant of the S144 coming,” Chalsani said. The S144 WTG is one of the largest in India and can be extendable up to 3.15 MW. It has a hub height of 140 meters and can also stretch up to 160 meters. It delivers 40-43 higher generation capacity than the company’s S120 model, a 2.1 MW WTG.

Talking about launching new models, Chalasani said, “In fresh sites having low wind speeds, a new product is required. What makes a difference is your rotor diameter and your hub height, which will decide what is required for low-wind sites and not MW.”

Published on May 30, 2025