World’s tallest wind turbine tower made of wood goes up in Sweden

Construction is underway in Sweden on a 105-metre wind turbine tower made entirely from wood, a milestone for Swedish wood technology company Modvion.

Upon completion, the tower will be Modvion’s first commercial installation and will be the tallest of its kind in the world.

A 2MW turbine will be mounted atop the turbine produced by leading Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas, who is also an investor in Modvion.

This milestone also marks the first time Modvion’s wooden tower technology will be paired with a Vestas wind turbine.

The tower and turbine are expected to begin operations before the end of the year and will be operated by energy company Varberg Energi, in the municipality of Skara in Sweden.

“This is the start of a new green industry,” said Otto Lundman, CEO of Modvion. “By using Nordic raw materials and Swedish technology, we can enable climate-neutral wind power for a growing global market.”

The wooden turbine is expected to dramatically reduce the carbon emitted from construction, given that a wind turbine tower is the component that usually emits the most carbon. By switching to laminated wood as a construction material – which Modvion boasts offers better strength-to-weight ratio than the types of steel commonly used for wind turbine towers – the resulting construction of a tower is carbon negative, storing more CO2 than is emitted during production.

“Wood enables building higher towers at a lower cost, which makes wind power more efficient since winds are stronger and more stable higher up,” said Lundman.

“That gives you more electricity from each permit to build wind turbines.”

Modvion erected its first wooden tower back in early 2020 on the Swedish island of Björkö, just off the coast from the city of Gothenburg. Modvion then attracted investment from Vestas in early 2021 and again in June.