Narrow forest roads, steep slopes and towering spruces growing close to the path – anyone who wants to transport an 86-metre rotor blade up here needs strong nerves and the right equipment. This is exactly the challenge faced by the self-propelled 12-axle Cometto MSPE combination with mounted blade lifter.
With impressive composure, the vehicle makes its way up to the Freiländeralm near Rettenbach in Styria. Between 17 and 22 kilometres of road at 1,500 metres above sea level, with gradients of up to 16 percent – a task that demands everything from both man and machine. “Our work boots are smoking,” jokes Sven Wolter from the transport specialist Hofmann, who walks the entire route beside the vehicle to monitor every tight spot. His “wingman” and “pitcher” Erik Piper guides him by radio, telling him how to best take each corner so the rotor blade safely clears the treetops. Tilting angles of more than 50 degrees were no rarity – and at wind speeds that would force conventional systems to give up.
The largest serially produced onshore blade
Here, Cometto’s patented Stability Control System (SCS) shows its strengths. It automatically balances the four support groups of the 48 electronically steered wheels. “This relieves the operator and allows full focus on driving and steering the blade lifter,” explains Joachim Kolb, Sales Manager at Cometto.
With a capacity of 1,000 metre-tonnes, the Cometto BladeMAX1000 is the strongest blade lifter of its kind on the market. In this Austrian project, it transports the currently largest serially produced onshore blade designed for a 7.8 MW turbine. A total of 24 blades, each 86 metres long, have to be transported – right at the limit of the machine’s capacity. “This is where superlatives meet,” says Kolb.
Energy transition with alpine character
Energie Steiermark AG relies on eight Goldwind turbines for this specific wind farm project. In the future, over 200 GWh of CO₂-free electricity will be generated here annually – enough to power around 57,000 households. Installation work was entrusted to Prangl from Vienna.
Not only the BladeMAX and crew had to perform at their peak. “The trees had grown into our transport route,” recalls Andreas Schneider from Prangl. “So we needed extra special equipment.” The solution looked almost cinematic: instead of convertibles like in the James Bond movie The World Is Not Enough, branches were trimmed with a helicopter saw – fast and effective, clearing the way for the BladeMAX1000 and the huge rotor blades. “And that will help us again next year when we bring up another seven turbines after the winter break.”
Published: 10/2025