The transition to a 100% renewable energy system will require unprecedented amounts of natural resources and financing while also impacting the environment in a major way. Using lightweight membrane kites to harvest wind energy, Kitepower technology can reduce the material effort to up to 10% of conventional wind turbines while substantially decreasing the environmental footprint and accessing stronger and more persistent winds at higher altitudes. The unique implementation combines a large inflatable membrane kite, a suspended robotic control unit, a tether, and a ground station with an integrated drum-generator unit. Energy is generated in pumping cycles, alternating between energy-generating reel-out phases, during which the kite is operated in crosswind maneuvers to maximize the tether force, and energy-consuming reel-in phases, during which the kite is depowered, and the crosswind maneuvers are stopped to minimize the tether force. A key challenge is the full automation of the operation, increasing reliability and robustness.

Kitepower is developing a 100 kW system based on a 60 m2 kite. Having teamed up with energy giant RWE and a large consortium of European partners, the company has started long-term testing of the 100 kW system in Ireland. Following its market introduction, the envisioned next scaling level is 500 kW.