Renewables generated a greater share of global electricity than coal for the first time on record between January and June 2025, reported energy think tank Ember, which described this moment as “a crucial turning point” in the move away from fossil fuels.
The contribution of wind and solar to the world’s power networks will increase further by the end of the decade. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global capacity will more than double by 2030 – “roughly the equivalent of adding China, the European Union and Japan’s total power generation capacity combined.”
In the UK, offshore wind already makes an important contribution to the energy mix. It currently has 15GW of capacity, equivalent to 17 percent of the country’s electricity needs, a figure that is set to rise to 43-50GW by 2030. While developing new capacity, operators are also looking to optimise output by maximising uptime. Success depends upon preventative maintenance strategies that minimise unexpected disruptions. As this article demonstrates, taking advantage of supplier solutions that provide analysis and insights can help.
Maintenance challenges
The current growth of renewables continues despite a myriad of ongoing challenges. The expansion “is taking place in a context of supply chain strains, grid integration challenges, financial pressures and policy shifts,” reports the IEA. “We’re developing wind farms faster than we can get connections to the grid,” agrees Amy Quinn, EMEA Corporate Account Manager for the Energy Sector at RS.
There are challenges at other stages in the lifecycle of a wind farm too. Turbines, for example, are complex assets operating in challenging conditions. Maintenance is crucial but involves complicated logistics and working at height, in confined spaces or out at sea, as well as the usual challenges of the maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) supply chain.
This means added pressure for operators. “They face high running costs,” says Quinn, “and if they have a lot of downtime, this can have an impact on the amount of energy produced and sold back to the grid, having a negative financial impact on operators.”
As a result, getting the basics of maintenance such as lubrication right is crucial, says Quinn:
“Lubrication play a critical role in the preventative maintenance plan that operators follow to ensure they maximise up time.”
Oil analysis service
Given this importance, oil and lubrication analysis plays a pivotal role in preventative maintenance regimes. “Regularly scheduled testing of lubrication helps manage degradation and identifies any contaminants which may have an impact on the wear of critical components,” says Quinn.
“This is a huge advantage for operators because by implementing these small regular checks while carrying out other maintenance on the turbine, they’re able to reduce the likelihood of a major component failure. The impact of that would not only just be downtime, but it would also be the cost associated with replacing that major component and the safety of the technicians who would need to carry out that work often in harsh environmental conditions and at heights.”
The ability to detect issues early, and identify and address potential problems such as wear, contamination and chemical imbalances before they cause severe damage or failure, is now easier than ever thanks to the RS Pro Wind Turbine Analysis Kit, a new testing service. “We provide everything you need in an easy-to-use kit,” says Quinn. “Engineers take the kit to site and take a sample of either your oil, grease or coolant. Once this is done, return the sample to RS and our team of qualified technicians in our UK laboratory tests for any contamination or degradation.
“We send back a fully digital report giving an overview and breakdown of our analysis along with actionable recommendations.”
Less reactive, less cost
Insights from this analysis may enable customers to, for instance, safely extend oil drain intervals. Changing oil less frequently is better for the environment, frees up time for engineers to work on other tasks. Longer term, the analysis kit helps to protect turbine components by identifying wear patterns early, reducing the likelihood of catastrophic failure leading to lengthy and expensive repairs.
By supporting a proactive approach to maintenance, the kit helps operators to move away from reacting to failures towards planned and preventative maintenance schedules based on real-time data. It minimises downtime, helping to reduce overall maintenance costs, enabling more efficient resource allocation and ensuring consistent energy production.
“The new kit is really exciting,” continues Quinn. “It allows our customers to get results quickly and drives efficiency within the sector as you can identify any areas of maintenance activity that may need to be carried out to ensure the long life of the turbine and longevity of energy production.”
To find out more about our oil analysis service and other solutions, click here